British supermarket giant Tesco made its first step into China on Friday as it opened its first outlet in the capital Beijing, named Hymall Tesco .
The opening has heated up the rivalry and competition between foreign retailers in the 2008 Olympic-hosting city.
Tesco is currently Europe’s number one retailer and the world’s third largest, but to help it’s move into the far east it bought a 50 per cent stake in Hymall, a top grocery brand under the Taiwan-based Ting Hsin International Group, back in 2004.
The company has 45 Hymall stores in China, all of which will change their signs to Hymall Tesco, as reported by the Beijing Business Today.
With the Olympic Games expected to bring big business opportunities insiders say the new outlet will face heavy pressure from foreign competitors, fighting for a market share in the capital.
In fact direct competition will come in the form of French retailer Carrefour, German based Metro and the US giant Wal-Mart, who along with Tesco, are all located on the eastern side of Beijing’s Fourth Ring Road.
Companies such as Carrefour are planning to expand their presence in the country with 20 new branches to open this year, along with 92 already in business .
Wal-Mart has 73 stores in China, and plans to open another 50 stores by the end of this year.
According to newspaper reports Tesco plans to open more stores across the Chinese capital in the near future.
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