SUPERMARKET giant Tesco will reveal that sales at its nonfood website, Tesco Direct, have soared by 25% compared with the same period last year, since the launch of a 1,000-page catalogue earlier this month.

The group, which reports interim results this week, is also expected to announce that Laura Wade-Gery, chief executive of its online grocery division Tesco. com, will become chief executive of Tesco Direct as well, replacing Steve Robinson who left earlier this month.

Tesco will confirm it plans to sell several hundred clothing lines over the web from October. It has 500,000 registered customers on its website – Clothingat-Tesco.com, but at present they can only browse the merchandise rather than buy it online.

Tesco is also expected to confirm that it will roll out Tesco Direct internet kiosks in 10 new nonfood Homeplus stores planned for the UK. The retailer believes that placing Tesco Direct online kiosks within stores will prove a winning combination.

The news comes as online sales will be highlighted as a star performer this week when the supermarket is tipped to report the slowest growth in its core UK market in more than seven years.

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