Tesco 2012 Annual Report Download - page 11

To put our responsibilities to the communities
we serve at the heart of what we do
We have reinforced our commitment to be a good corporate citizen
this year: as a retailer, an employer and a neighbour. We employ
over half a million people worldwide, which allows us to make a real
difference in the communities where we operate. Our core business
involves two vital roles in the heart of the community: providing
customers with safe, good quality, affordable, nutritious food and
creating good jobs and careers. Beyond this, we have demonstrated
that we put our responsibilities to communities at the heart of what
we do in a huge variety of ways: I want to pay tribute to just some of
the great achievements of the last year.
Even when their own homes were in danger or flooded, our people
in Thailand went to extraordinary lengths for customers. Some even
gave up their days off and travelled for hours by boat to continue to
get essential supplies to our customers. There is no better example of
our colleagues living true to the Tesco Values: ‘No one tries harder for
customers’ and ‘Treat people how we like to be treated’.
Our responsibility to our people is to provide them with good jobs
and careers. In the last year, we have created thousands of jobs
across our businesses, invested in a state-of-the-art, zero-carbon
training academy in South Korea and have continued our work in
the employment of young people, university graduates and the
long-term unemployed.
Our customer offering is based on strong relationships with our
suppliers. For example, we now have supplier academies in all of our
Central European markets for suppliers to present their products to
our buyers. This enables us to support the growth of our suppliers
whilst sourcing the best local and regional products for our customers.
Any business on the scale of Tesco has the opportunity to make a
significant difference in tackling climate change. We were proud to
be recognised by the Carbon Disclosure Project again this year, with
Tesco named the top retailer in the world. We will continue our work
as we progress towards our ambitious target of being a zero-carbon
business by 2050.
Our state-of-the-art, zero-carbon training academy in South Korea,
to train staff from across the Tesco Group
To be a creator of highly valued brands
Finest sold well over £1 billion in the UK alone this year. In April 2012 we
relaunched Tesco Value as Everyday Value, with quality improvements
to hundreds of products
Across our markets our own-label programme encompasses a
broad spectrum of ranges to appeal to diverse customer needs,
giving customers the quality products they are looking for at
competitive prices.
In the last year we have expanded our offering, launching new ranges
such as Venture Brands in the UK and Europe – including Chokablok
chocolate and ice cream and Carousel children’s toys – which offer
customers premium quality at great prices.
We have started to differentiate our ranges more clearly, such as
our sub-brands Gourmet and Eat Well in Fresh & Easy and Goodness,
which is a range of healthy and nutritious children’s products now
also available in the UK.
We recently relaunched our UK Tesco Value range as Everyday Value,
with quality improvements to hundreds of products and new, brighter
packaging. This is the first stage in a refresh of our entire range of over
8,000 Tesco brand products in the UK in the next two years, including
a comprehensive update to our Tesco Standard range.
This is an area of substantial and growing strategic importance for us,
as we recognise the role that our brands play in attracting customers
and as we start to leverage our expertise in brand management across
our markets.
Tesco PLC Annual Report and Financial Statements 2012 7
STRATEGIC REVIEW PERFORMANCE REVIEW GOVERNANCE FINANCIAL STATEMENTSOVERVIEW
Chief Executive’s review Strategy in action Business model