Fresh & Easy opens 100th store

FULLERTON, Calif. Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market opened its 100th store this week, just a year after Tesco's debut in the United States.

Tim Mason, ceo of Fresh & Easy, said "We would like to thank our neighbors and customers for a fantastic first year.  We've built a unique business from the ground up by listening to what Americans want in a grocery market.  They told us they wanted fresh, quality foods at prices they could afford.  They told us they wanted to get the groceries and staples they need in one easy-to-shop location.  And, they told us they wanted stores close to where they live.  One year and 100 stores later, the response from customers to our offer has surpassed our expectations.  Both internal and independent research regularly confirms customers like the quality and prices of our food, as well as the convenient locations of our stores."

Fresh & Easy has opened 26 stores in Phoenix; 25 in Las Vegas; and 49 in Southern California.  The company said it has secured a strong pipeline of stores in California, Arizona and Nevada.  The company has also announced plans to open stores in Northern California.

The news of the 100th Fresh & Easy store comes at a time when the company said it would slow expansion. According to reports, Mason said plans to expand into Northern California would be put on hold in response to the struggling U.S. economy.