Sainsbury takes Tesco's route online

SAINSBURY is set to make an embarrassing U-turn over its internet shopping strategy and copy fierce rival Tesco's methods. The supermarket group plans to close its Manchester depot, which was designed to supply 2.5m online customers in the area.

Goods will now be delivered from local stores instead. Its home-shopping operation, Sainsbury's-to-you, was launched in a blaze of publicity two years ago in an attempt to catch up with Tesco. Instead of using staff in stores, as Tesco does, its idea was to use separate 'pick and pack' depots to supply online customers.

At the time, Sainsbury confidently insisted: 'This is the way to go long-term because there are many issues concerning picking from stores. 'For example, if demand for online shopping suddenly increases, then in-store customers could well lose out.' The company's Gorton depot in Manchester opened in November 2000. It could stock 15,000 lines and take 5,000 orders a week.

But now it is being shut and its 159 staff transferred. Nearby stores would handle the business after extensive refurbishing, said a Sainsbury spokesman. Despite the online shopping setback, the group, which is one year into a three-year recovery programme, is poised to announce encouraging results this week.

Analysts predict profits before tax of between £615m and £625m, compared with £549m last year.

The company, whose current TV adverts feature England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson, will also launch its Freefrom healthy-food range of more than 60 products free of gluten, dairy products and wheat.