The battle for top spot
In the 1990s Tesco continued to tighten its grip on the UK with more store openings and an agressive marketing campaign in an attempt to overtake Sainsbury's as the UK's leading grocer.
In 1992, the company launched is slogan 'every little helps', followed by the Tesco Value range in 1993. This was followed by the launch of the Tesco Clubcard scheme in 1995, helping Tesco to overtake rival Sainsbury's as the UK's largest food retailer.
1996 saw the retailer introduce its first 24-hour store while it also expanded overseas opening shops in Poland, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia. In 1997 Tesco appointed Sir Terry Leahy as chief executive.
Tesco.com was launched in 2000 and the supermarket continued to expand its range of products, which now includes clothes, electricals and personal finance products. In 2004 Tesco entered the broadband market.
In 2006, the retailer announced ambitious plans to open stores in the US under the name 'Fresh and Easy' and funded by existing resources. Tesco now operates in 13 countries.
Today it reported that group sales were £51.8bn in the year to February 23 2008. Pre-tax profit rose to £2.8bn.
In 2008 the retail giant took its conquest of the UK one step further by buying up some rival Somerfield stores on remote islands in Scotland, giving Tesco a presence in every single postcode area in the country. As it stands there is only one postcode in the UK - in Harrogate in North Yorkshire - which does not have a Tesco.
In 2009 Tesco Bank was launched as a joint venture with Royal Bank of Scotland.
In 2010 the supermarket opens its first zero-carbon supermarket in Ramsey,