Store numbers of leading supermarket chains in the United Kingdom (UK) 2013

This statistic shows the number of stores for eight of the leading grocery retailers in the United Kingdom (UK), as of July 2013. The Co-operative food had the highest number on the list at 3,912 stores, 1,457 more than the UK's biggest grocery retailer Tesco. The Co-operative operates a large number of convenience stores and smaller formats, which likely result in it having a higher number of stores than larger grocery retailers and even more so than the market leader Tesco. Convenience store formats play an increasingly large role in grocery retail, with value growth expected to increase significantly in coming years compared to traditional channels, such as supermarkets. Overall, however, the number of specialized stores for the retail sale of food, beverages and tobacco has decreased in the United Kingdom. For an up to date ranking of store numbers operated by major grocery retailers, please see the following.