Collapse of Tesco Car Sales

Sky News has reported that,

"Supermarket chain Tesco's brief foray into the consumer car market has reached a dead end."

Tesco Cars was set up in April 2011 to sell second-hand vehicles but failed to become a viable business venture.

The firm's website has announced the closure and said: 

"We started Tesco Cars in good faith and we always aim to do a good job for customers.

However, following a review of the business model we and Carsite, our partner, have decided that we cannot offer customers a satisfactory range of vehicles and as a result, have decided it is right to close the business."

According to 'Car Dealer' magazine, Tesco lacked popular car models to sell and began laying off staff on Christmas Eve after it failed to build sales via Tesco card club member access.

An industry insider said: "I also know there were a lot of changes at board level.  The guys driving the Tesco Cars brand along were moved to other parts of the business, which weren't doing well and that says a lot.  Tesco is really struggling at the moment - they can't seem to sell food in the UK, so why bother with cars?"

 

This major failure comes as part of a series of other similar 'crashes.' 

It comes after:

• the retailer's worst Christmas period for 20 years, during which they were out-performed by the other members of the 'big four';

• £5bn was sliced from the chain's shares in January after a profit warning was announced;

• the humiliation of their market share dropping below 30% for the first time since this milestone was achieved;

• turmoil within the company's management structure that has seen former UK operations boss Mr Richard Brasher losing his job – the fourth board director to depart since Philip Clarke took the top job in 2011;

• a plague of mice that forced the closure of their Covent Garden store hardly lifted morale within the company;

• nor did the loss of a battle to open a Tesco Express store in Herne village in Kent when the whole village united against their planning application, and one local councillor branded the company "totally silly."

The collapse of the car business is the latest problem to hit the stricken firm since it announced a £30,000 gift to London Gay Pride in November 2011.

Whether the Gay Pride decision has brought the wrath of God on the supermarket giant, or whether that ill-timed and ill-thought-out decision was simply a manifestation of a general and deep-seated incompetence, depends on one’s point of view.

Certainly the verdict of God's Word cannot be disputed; 1 Samuel 2:30:  "Them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed."