Tesco Business Update 2026
29 April 2026, 8:30 AM - 3:45 PM BST
Alexandra Palace, Alexandra Palace Way, London N22 7AYPowering growth, personalisation and partnerships
Join us for the 2026 Tesco Business update where the leadership team will share the steps they’re taking to help customers, colleagues and partners thrive in the year ahead.
This event has sold out three years running - so don’t miss your chance to be part of it.
Why attend?
Discover how Tesco are building on their progress, and cultivating a brand that’s trusted by millions.
Hear directly from leaders about Tesco’s vision and priorities for growth
Book one-to-one meetings with buyers to build even stronger partnerships
Get early access to the strategies shaping the future of retail
Strategic priorities for 2026
The Tesco business continues to stay true to what matters most: delivering magnetic value, strengthening Clubcard’s digital power, making shopping more convenient, investing where it counts, and continuing to put customers at the heart of everything they do.
Ashwin Prasad
Chief Executive Officer, Tesco
Gordon Gafa
UK Food & Commercial Operations Managing Director
The Tesco Business Update from IGD gives the Tesco leadership team the platform to deliver the future Food strategy to their suppliers. If you supply other areas of the Tesco business, such as the Home and Clothing divisions, we recommend you keep in touch with your Tesco contacts, to ensure you receive updates and invites to separate events relevant to these areas.
Testimonials
Agenda at a glance
08:30 – 09:45
Registration and refreshments
09:45 – 11:00
Introduction, Keynote session 1 and IGD Market Update
Tom Wakeman, Insight Director, IGD
Ashwin Prasad, Chief Commercial Officer, Tesco
Becky Brock, Group Customer Director, Tesco
James Walton, Chief Economist, IGD
11:00 – 11:45
Morning break and networking
11:45 – 13:00
Keynote session 2 and Leadership Q&A
Gordon Gafa, UK Food & Commercial Operations Managing Director, Tesco
Ashwin Prasad Chief Commercial Officer, Tesco
Becky Brock Group Customer Director, Tesco
13:00 – 14:15
Lunch and pre-scheduled 1-2-1 meetings
14:15 – 15:45
Breakouts
The programme will then split into two streams for Own Brand and Branded attendees.
Commercial Directors Dominic Morrey and Jack Brabin will lead the breakout sessions talking through their plans and priorities for the year ahead.
Dominic Morrey, Commercial Director – Fresh, Tesco
Own Brand Breakout
Jack Brabin, Commercial Director – Packaged, Tesco
Branded Breakout
15:45
Close
Tom Wakeman
Insight Director, IGD
Tom leads IGD’s insight strategy, partnering with global clients to anticipate change and drive growth by translating data into actionable strategies that help businesses thrive.
James Walton
Chief Economist, IGD
James' role at IGD is to help businesses anticipate and cope with strategic events, including economic pressures, geo-political change, social developments and environmental stress. James has worked with clients across the entire grocery industry as well as with non-industry groups such as government departments, financial businesses, and NGOs. James joined IGD in April 1999 and has served in several roles, becoming Chief Economist in 2004. Prior to joining IGD, he worked for Hillsdown Holdings, Northern Foods and Rank-Xerox.
Ashwin Prasad
Chief Commercial Officer, Tesco
Ashwin is responsible for the delivery of our Product and Customer strategy across the Group. This involves building the Tesco brand globally to maximise the quality of our overall proposition to customers and for the planning, ranging, sourcing and supply of the products we sell across the Group as well as procurement for the Group.
He joined Tesco in 2010 from Mars Inc. He has worked across a number of product divisions as Category Director and Commercial Director.
Ashwin joined the Executive Committee in September 2020.
Becky Brock
Group Customer Director, Tesco
Becky is accountable for customer strategy, brand & proposition development and digital transformation across the Tesco business.
She began her career at Unilever, developing as a classically trained marketer across regional and European roles before moving to premium spirits at The Edrington Group where she held a series of Global marketing and commercial roles. She has subsequently become an experienced retail leader in very different types of businesses, most recently overhauling the Costa Coffee proposition as Global Commercial & Marketing Director.
She has built a reputation for galvanising team performance, bringing clarity of vision and commercial acumen to her roles. She is a NED for The Marketing Society and a proud Fellow of the Marketing Academy.
Gordon Gafa
UK Food & Commercial Operations Managing Director, Tesco
Gordon was appointed UK Food Managing Director at Tesco in June 2025. He has overall responsibility for Fresh Food, Packaged goods, Fuel & Tobacco as well as the Group Commercial Operations and Supply Chain teams. Prior to that he was the Commercial Director for the Packaged division for over three years and also led the Booker Fresh Food team as Director of Trading for two years.
Joining Tesco in 2011 as a Category Sourcing Manager, Gordon was then promoted in 2013 to Commodities Director, a function he set up from scratch. He then transitioned to Bakery Category Director in 2015, a role which he held for 5 years. In 2017, he also started looking after the Dairy and Local categories. Gordon has 27 years of commercial experience as prior to Tesco he worked in various category and buying roles in FMCG businesses.
Dominic Morrey
Commercial Director - Fresh, Tesco
Dom started his career with Marks and Spencer and for over 21 years worked in a variety of roles across all product areas in their food division.
He then spent 11 years with the Booker business and performed numerous roles within their the commercial division. During his time in wholesale he was instrumental in shaping the product agenda and delivery across the retail and catering sectors. He initially led the transformation of Booker's Fresh offer, and then moved to the Commercial Director role for the Product function for 2 years.
Dom moved from Booker to join the Tesco team as the Commercial Director for the Fresh division in 2022, and in 2024, his role expanded to include our Own Brand proposition.
Jack Brabin
Commercial Director - Packaged, Tesco
Joining Tesco in 2016, Jack has held senior leadership roles across Product, Channels and Finance, having worked in both our UK and Central European businesses. In his current role at Tesco, he is responsible for commercial strategy, performance delivery, supplier partnerships and end‑to‑end execution across the Tesco Packaged division.
Before joining Tesco, Jack served as Vice President for Operations at Pearson, based in Singapore, overseeing regional operational strategy and transformation across key Asian & Middle Eastern markets. This followed an extensive international career spanning media and financial services across the UK, US and Australia.
Ticket prices
| In-person | Live stream |
Member | £500 | £250 |
Non-member | £750 | £350 |
*Small business | £275 | £200 |
What’s included
| In-person | Live stream |
Hear the latest strategic updates from the Tesco leadership team. | Yes | Yes |
Put your questions to the Tesco leadership team during a live and interactive Q&A. | Yes | Yes |
Hear an economic update and forecast from the IGD team. | Yes | Yes |
Access to either the Branded or Own Brand breakout session for the latest on performance, product plans and priorities | Yes | Yes |
Abridged presentations will be available to view within 5 working days of the event ending | Yes | Yes |
Opportunity to join the IGD post event demo exclusive for Tesco Business Update attendees. | Yes | Yes |
Join us for food throughout the day that showcases the best of Tesco | Yes |
|
Have face to face conversations with the Tesco senior management team and make connections with the Tesco buyers. | Yes |
|
Opportunity to pre-schedule 1-2-1 meetings. | Yes |
|
Advance access to the event app to enable you to plan your day and maximise your event experience. | Yes |
|
Prices displayed ex-VAT, IGD reserves the right to alter any element of the programme, such as speakers, times and venue, should the need arise. All bookings are subject to your acceptance of the IGD Terms& Conditions and Privacy Policy. This event is designed for current or potential suppliers and manufacturers of goods for sale in Tesco stores. Your identity data will be used by IGD and shared with Tesco for the purposes of administering the event, including in the Tesco Business Update platform / app for a) in a delegate list; and b) allowing other delegates to send you messages within the platform / app. IGD and Tesco reserve the right to reject any order at their discretion.
*Small Business Rate
As part of IGD’s commitment to help small business to grow, IGD is offering a small business rate for this event.
To qualify for a discounted rate you will need to be a small manufacturing business with a global turnover of less than £10 million. Please note this is not your annual turnover with this retailer and is only available to manufacturing businesses. Place your order above and email your annual global turnover to [email protected], or get in touch if you have an questions.
Cancellation Fees
Cancellations to be confirmed in writing.
Over 30 days notice – Full refund
15 – 30 days notice – 50% refund (or transferred to virtual ticket)
Less than 15 days notice – No refund / transfers
Please email [email protected]
General information
Overview
IGD and Tesco, working in partnership are keen to create connection and conversation in a face-to-face setting. Tesco will share their progress on their strategic priorities and plans for the year ahead.
What's the format of the event?
In-person option:
A dedicated session with the Tesco leadership team on strategic priorities and plans for the year ahead
Access to either the Branded or Own Brand breakout session for the latest on performance, product plans and priorities
Put your questions to Tesco’s leadership team during a live and interactive Q&A
Join us for food throughout the day that showcases the best of Tesco food missions
Our event app provides advance access, giving you time to prepare for the event and gain the most from the programme and venue on the day
Opportunity to preschedule 1-2-1 meetings
Live stream option:
View the plenary session with the leadership team on the strategic priorities and plans for the year ahead
View the Branded and Own Brand breakout session updates for the latest on performance, product plans and priorities
Put your questions to Tesco’s leadership team during the live Q&A
How do I book 1-2-1 Buyer Meetings?
The Tesco Business Update 2026 from IGD offers a valuable opportunity to connect directly with a Tesco buyer - whether you’re strengthening an existing relationship or engaging with a prospective partner.
As the event approaches, you will have the chance to book a 1-2-1 meeting slot with your preferred buyer* through our dedicated 1-2-1 booking system.
Important Information:
Tesco colleagues manage their own schedules, and meeting requests are accepted or declined at their discretion.
To maximise your chances of securing a meeting, we strongly recommend booking as soon as the system goes live. You will receive an email notification when booking opens.
Approximately 200 Tesco buyers will be in attendance. If your preferred buyer is unavailable or not attending the event, you will have the option to search by category to find an alternative contact.
*Please note: Buyer availability is subject to change, and meeting slots are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
Where is the event taking place?
Venue:
The Tesco Business Update from IGD is being held at Alexandra Palace, Alexandra Palace Way, London N22 7AY.
Getting to Alexandra Palace:
This is a new venue for the Tesco Business Update and as such we are making your travel to the venue easier. The nearest station is Alexandra Palace Station located just a few stops on the Great Northern Line from Kings Cross or a couple of stops from Finsbury Park Tube station which is serviced via the Northern and Picadilly tube lines.
Wood Green underground station is the nearest tube station. This is serviced by the Picadilly Line. It is a 10 minute drive from Alexandra Palace. Shuttle buses will operate during peak arrival and departure times to Wood Green station.
Shuttle Bus:
Shuttle buses will be arranged to transport you from Alexandra Palace & Wood Green Stations to the venue itself to assist your journey. More details regarding this service will be provided in due course.
Driving:
Should you decide to drive, there is plenty of car parking on-site. More information regarding the car park available to us will be provided in due course.
Is there a dress code?
Most attendees opt for business casual, we would certainly suggest comfortable shoes as you move around the venue.
Can I get access to the presentations after the event?
Yes, an abridged version of the slides will be available to view within 5 working days of the event ending. You will receive an email once slides are accessible via our virtual event platform and your MyEvents section of IGD.com.
Booking details and communication
When will I receive my ticket and access to the virtual platform?
IGD have adopted a paperless approach to ticketing. You will receive your unique QR code the day before the event for in-person attendance via the event app and email, your QR will be required to enable you to print your badge on the entry. If you have purchased a virtual ticket, you will receive your unique link to stream the event, one week prior. Please do check your junk/spam folder if you do not receive this, or let us know by email.
I am registered for the event but haven’t heard anything in a while. What should I do?
All communications regarding the event will be sent via [email protected]. If you feel you have missed any communications, please reach out to [email protected]
I can no longer attend, could I please get a refund? Would it be possible to transfer my ticket to someone else?
A reminder of our refund policy:
Over 30 days notice - Full refund
15 - 30 days notice - 50% refund (or transferred to virtual ticket)
Less than 15 days notice - No refund
If you wish to transfer your ticket to a colleague, this is free of charge, please send over their details as well as those of the individual they will be replacing, to [email protected]. Please make sure the request is with us one week prior to the event to ensure access to the event app and virtual platform.
Can I make a name change?
Name changes remain free of charge, we do ask that your request is with us one week prior to the event date, to enable access to our event app. Name changes must be made in writing to [email protected].
How do I obtain a VAT receipt?
A receipt will be sent to your company’s finance department once your order has been processed. If you would like a copy, please send your order number & request to [email protected].
Our responsibilities to you
How do I communicate my accessibility needs?
We are committed to providing a welcoming and inclusive event experience for all attendees. If you have an accessibility-related requirement or request for this event, please let us know in your registration profile (which you’ll be sent once your ticket has been purchased).
For more information, please contact [email protected]
What is your inclusion and diversity policy for this event?
Inclusion and diversity are fundamental to our culture at IGD. The following measures are in place to support attendees feel included at our events:
Include your gender pronoun on your badge, via your registration profile (which you’ll be sent, once your ticket has been purchased).
A dedicated inclusion and diversity room will be available, please do email [email protected], for further details.
How does IGD ensure that I am kept safe at this event?
IGD is committed to providing safe and secure environments for our attendees. All local and national authority guidance and regulations will be adhered to by IGD and the venue team.
What is IGD doing to reduce the carbon impact of this event?
IGD and Tesco have worked to minimise our environmental impact wherever possible, the following measures are in place to continue our mission in this area:
Access to our interactive Event App
Using recycled, recyclable, and biodegradable materials where possible.
Minimising food waste
Monitoring and reducing our carbon footprint year on year
You can help support this mission by considering the following options:
Travel by public transport to the event.
Reduce travel for meetings: Utilise your time in London to conduct other meetings around this event.
Lanyard reuse: Please drop your badge and lanyard back to us at the end of the day, so we can clean and reuse this.
Key event contacts
General enquiries – [email protected]