Tesco has launched its first iPhone application. The app, called the Tesco Store and Product Finder, helps users to find the location of their nearest UK Tesco store (including Express and Extra stores). But, says Nick Lansley of Tesco the app also allows users to find any grocery product in that store by describing its aisle and shelf.

Available on iTunes, the app is free and available worldwide although it only works for UK stores at the moment, and only with grocery products. Currently, non-food items are not supported by the app.

Does beer count as a grocery product? Not that the author of this piece for ShoutingInDigital requires an app to tell him where the beer aisle is! But, if this app sounds useful to you here’s how to get it!

Tesco has announced its strongest Christmas performance for three years, the retailer has announced.

According to a report in Talking Retail, the supermarket giant posted like-for-like sales growth of 4.9% excluding VAT and petrol, with its Double Clubcard points scheme contributing 0.7% of the sales growth in the six-week period to January 9th in the UK market.

The chain also saw strong sales of its Finest range, and sold 35% more bottles of Champagne than in 2008. Non-food performance also saw continued growth with improved like-for-like sales, driven by particularly good growth in clothing, electricals and toys.

Tesco’s sales growth also continued into their online operations with both food and non-food posting a combined growth of nearly 20% in the six-weeks while Tesco Direct saw sales growth increase by more than 50% with strong performance in toys, TV games and entertainment,

In the international sphere, Tesco saw a combined 4.1% increase from its Asia, Europe and US operations at constant exchange rates, and 2.5% at actual exchange rates.