Tesco Finds an Even Dozen L.A. Store Sites

HOLLYWOOD-British grocer Tesco has identified 12 sites in the Los Angeles area where it will open its new chain of Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Markets, including one at 7120 Hollywood Blvd. in a building owned by Federal Realty Investment Trust and the CIM Group. The 16,600-sf Fresh & Easy in Hollywood is expected to open at a 149,000-sf neighborhood shopping center in the fall of 2008, according to the building owners, who consider landing Tesco a coup. “Tesco is currently one of the most sought-after retailers,”says Jeff Kreshek, a principal at CIM Group.

According to Tim Mason, Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market CEO, the 12 store sites that the British firm has identified stretch from Hollywood to Compton. Tesco is also planning to find more L.A. area sites and to open stores throughout San Diego, Phoenix and Las Vegas later this year.

The Fresh & East format will be “smaller than the usual supermarket to give customers a faster, easier shopping experience,” Mason says. Along with announcing its expansion plans, Tesco has been promoting its new stores as good places to work by publicizing wages and benefits offered.