Tesco is said to be planning to launch a new range of discount supermarkets looking to rival Aldi and Lidl.
Britain's biggest supermarket chain, which has several stores in Chester, is reported to be developing a separate brand to match the German budget retailers to win back some market share, our sister paper Birmingham Mail reports.
The cheap-and-cheerful methods employed by the German stores will be introduced at the new, budget-friendly supermarkets.
These include keeping a reduced amount of stock, displaying goods on pallets, and multiple barcodes so customers can get through the checkouts more quickly.
The sales tactics used by Aldi and Lidl cut costs for storage, transport and staff, meaning prices can be kept low.
Tesco, which has a 28% share in the UK grocery market - compared to Aldi's 6.9% and Lidl's 5% - has not yet commented on the report.
Both German stores began life aiming to provide cut-price products to families on lower incomes, but have since earned a big customer base among better-off people.
Aldi recently knocked Waitrose off the top spot in an annual supermarket satisfaction survey.
It was placed first in the in-store category in the survey of 6,800 shoppers who were asked about their experience of shopping for groceries both in-store and at online supermarkets over the previous six months.
Marks & Spencer was placed second, while Lidl was third, with Sainsbury's placed bottom of the in-store survey.
