Gordon Fryett of Tesco Ireland tells Edward Power how the upcoming battle to maintain the firm's pre-eminence has done little to dampen his penchant for the retailing game

Few senior executives can claim to have joined a company as a junior recruit and assiduously scaled the corporate ziggurat. Fewer still began their careers while still in school britches. Mr Gordon Fryett, chief executive of Tesco Ireland, is something of a rarity then; a boardroom heavyweight who entered the business at ground level and unassumingly ascended the ranks.

Mr Fryett is atypical in other ways too. The soft-spoken Scot is, for one thing, surprisingly reserved, lacking much of the bombast and chutzpah with which we associate besuited high flyers. When he tells you he has devoted his professional life to retailing because he enjoys interacting with customers, it smacks of deeply held conviction rather than glib baloney. Were his gaze less steely, his unwillingness to comment on affairs beyond his remit not quite so unyielding, Mr Fryett's introversion might be interpreted as timidity.

He shouldn't be mistaken for a soft touch however. Beneath that genteel veneer, glimpses of ruthlessness and determination glimmer through. They are qualities that Mr Fryett will need to draw upon over coming months.

With Tesco's position as Ireland's favourite grocer increasingly threatened by discount competitors and rapacious convenience retailers, it is apparent that the British chain faces a bruising battle to maintain its pre-eminence. Most ominous is the challenge set to arrive from overseas.

Despite repeated insistence that suitors will be firmly rebuffed, the Superquinn empire is regarded as ripe for takeover by a British chain, prompting industry insiders to speculate that entry of another UK multiple into the market is a question of "when" rather than "if". In such circumstances, Tesco would come under intense pressure to cut costs in a sector already characterised by slender margins.

Yet Mr Fryett is sanguine over the prospect of heightened competition, maintaining Tesco is content to concentrate on refining its services and leave the opposition to worry about itself. He is markedly less laid-back over the burgeoning popularity of cut-price German newcomers Aldi and Lidl, which are fast transcending their niche positions to become heavyweight rivals to Tesco.

"We're keeping our eyes on Aldi and Lidl. It would be foolish of us not to. Ultimately, however, all we can do is focus on serving our own customers as best we can and leave our rivals to get on with their own thing," he says.

Rather ironically for an executive who has dedicated his career to routing the opposition, Mr Fryett welcomes the prospect of a more competitive marketplace. The consumer stands to benefit obviously - but so too would retailers, he insists. "Competition is good for us all. It forces us to tighten up our act - it stops us from becoming complacent," he says.

Cognisant of the upheavals that may shortly wrack the Irish retail market, Mr Fryett has quietly and inconspicuously presided over a seismic attitudinal shift within Tesco Ireland.

Though he dare not publicly utter it for fear of forewarning his adversaries, diversification is the new watchword. The chain is determined to expand beyond its core grocery activities and build itself into a one-stop service provider modelled along its British cousin, which this week announced it will be entering the home-phone market in partnership with Cable & Wireless.

This new strategy will become increasingly discernible over the next 18 months. Tesco opens its first late-night convenience store in the Republic next year, adding impetus to predictions that it is poised to introduce its successful 'Tesco Metro' brand here.

And, in a development that may prove even more consequential, the group will unveil its first forecourt outlet in Kerry in early 2004. With three further service stations set to open in greater Dublin, subject to planning approval, it is clear that Tesco is determined to substantially broaden its range of activities in the Republic.

Mr Fryett is reluctant to talk-up the significance of its plans however, insisting that the store must not outpace consumer requirements in a bid to gain market share.

He speaks with experience. Tesco's arrival in Ireland coincided with the economic boom; a phenomenon that not only boosted the average citizen's spending power but considerably broadened our tastes. Weary of bland foods and turgid ready-to-eat meals, we greeted Tesco's range of ethnic and exotic dishes with relish. The chain is happy to assume partial credit for the increasing sophistication of the national palate. But this change was gradual and a shift to non-grocery retailing is likely to be even more long term.

It is of paramount importance that the customer vests unshakeable trust in a retailer - a relationship that may take years or even decades to build, cautions Mr Fryett. Unlike their British counterparts, Irish consumers have scarce familiarity with the notion of a supermarket providing financial advice, selling petrol and operating corner shops,

"Tesco is not rushing into anything. We are not interested in reaping quick profits at the risk to our long-term image. Our mission is to give consumers what they want and to build an enduring relationship. It is not in our interests to sell them a product in which they clearly have little interest."

Tesco's reluctance to upset Irish sensibilities can be traced to its entry to the market with the acquisition in 1997 of the Quinnsworth chain for €882 million. Fears that the British multiple would ride roughshod over local considerations and freeze out indigenous suppliers in favour of cheaper cross-channel alternatives were rife. So voracious was public and industry hostility to Tesco that the group took the unprecedented step of publicly committing itself to raise its intake of Irish goods' suppliers within five years. Mr Fryett remains conscious that Tesco's Irish market cannot be simply regarded as an adjunct of its British one. And he asserts that the group's foray into the Republic has, if anything, been enormously beneficial to domestic producers.

He cites last year's deal with Bewley's that saw the Irish firm awarded the contract to supply Tesco-branded coffees in Ireland and Britain.

"Huge opportunities have been presented to Irish suppliers. Working with Tesco has offered many a conduit to our UK market. So, rather than damaging the Irish food industry, our arrival has in many ways given it an opportunity to grow."

The awaiting challenges have failed to dampen Mr Fryett's appetite for the fray. He says he is addicted to the retailing game, making time to visit as many supermarkets as possible each week.

"There are few industries that allow you that same level of interaction with consumers. I genuinely love the buzz of working in a supermarket and try to visit as many stores as possible every week to get my fix."