Tesco Has a Structured Launchpad. Sainsbury's Just Folded Its Front Door. So Where Does Your Brand Actually Stand?

The UK's two biggest supermarkets are running very different playbooks for challenger brands in 2025 and 2026. Here's what every food and drink founder needs to know before deciding which door to knock on -- and how hard to knock.

Getting your product onto the shelves of a major UK supermarket is the goal every food and drink brand talks about. But most brands approach it the wrong way: they spend months trying to figure out who to call, when the real question is which retailer is actually open to brands like yours right now.

Tesco and Sainsbury's have been the two most popular destinations for challenger brands in the UK for years. Between them, they hold roughly 45% of all UK grocery spending. But in the past 18 months, their approaches to onboarding new brands have moved in opposite directions. Tesco has built the most structured, transparent, and open brand programme in UK grocery. Sainsbury's has just dismantled the dedicated team that made it famous for innovation.

That shift changes everything for brands trying to plan their retail strategy. This article breaks down exactly how both programmes work today, what each supermarket is looking for, what you actually get if you're accepted, and which route makes more sense for your brand right now.

1. The UK Grocery Landscape: Why Tesco and Sainsbury's Still Matter Most

Before we get into the programmes, it helps to understand just how dominant these two retailers are.

As of 2025, Tesco holds around 29.1% of the UK grocery market -- the largest share of any retailer, and growing. Sainsbury's sits in second place at roughly 15.7%. Together, they account for nearly half of every pound spent on groceries in Britain. No other two retailers come close.

Source: Kantar / Consumer Edge, 2025 data

For a challenger brand, getting listed with either Tesco or Sainsbury's isn't just about sales volume. It's a signal to every other retailer, every investor, and every stockist that your brand is serious. A Tesco or Sainsbury's listing is the closest thing UK grocery has to a public stamp of approval.

But both retailers are also drowning in pitches. Thousands of brands approach them every year. The ones that succeed are the ones that understand what each retailer actually wants -- and how to approach them the right way.

2. The Tesco Accelerator Programme: How It Works in 2025-2026

Tesco launched its Accelerator Programme in February 2024, replacing its older Incubator scheme. It's now the most active and well-publicised challenger brand programme in UK grocery.

By early 2026, Tesco had welcomed more than 70 brands across five cohorts. A sixth cohort opened for applications in early 2026. This isn't a token gesture -- it's a proper, functioning pipeline.

How the programme is structured

The Tesco Accelerator runs on an annual cohort model. Each intake goes through a 12-month programme that includes:

• Store and online listings -- successful brands get stocked in Tesco stores and on Tesco.com
• Dedicated innovation buying team -- a team specifically assigned to support Accelerator brands, separate from Tesco's main buying function
• Year-long mentoring and development -- a curated calendar of learning events, workshops, and strategic insight sessions
• Reduced Tesco Retail Media rates -- so you can actually afford to advertise within Tesco's ecosystem
• Discounted access to the Tesco Insights Platform -- giving you real data on how your product is performing
• Competitive payment terms -- designed to help growing brands manage cash flow

The scale of each cohort has varied. The first intake in February 2024 brought in 27 brands. A second cohort of 16 brands followed in September 2024. The 2025 intakes continued at a similar pace.

"Our customers love to try innovative new products, whether that's a speciality product they can't get anywhere else, or a brand that has sustainability at its heart." -- Ashwin Prasad, Chief Commercial Officer, Tesco, February 2024

Who is applying and how

Applications go through RangeMe, an online platform Tesco uses to source and evaluate new products. The process is:

1. Create a RangeMe profile (free for new applicants)
2. Submit an application during the open window (applications typically close in March each year)
3. Wait for a response -- Tesco reviews all entries and confirms next steps within roughly two to three weeks
4. If shortlisted, you may be asked to send product samples
5. Final decisions are usually communicated within six to eight weeks of the application closing

One practical note: existing RangeMe free-tier users need to upgrade to a paid subscription to access the campaign. New applicants can create a free account and apply at no cost.

Tesco Accelerator: Key Stats at a Glance
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Launched:          February 2024
Brands supported:  70+ across 5 cohorts (as of early 2026)
Programme length:  12 months per cohort
Diverse founders:  35% of participants are female-founded or co-founded
Application route: RangeMe platform
Contact:           acceleratorprogramme@tesco.com

3. What Tesco Actually Looks For: The Three Pillars

Tesco is very clear about its selection criteria. Every brand that applies is assessed against three pillars: Customer, Community, and Planet.

This isn't just branding language -- it genuinely shapes who gets in and who doesn't.

Customer

Tesco wants products that are innovative, different, and tap into what shoppers are already leaning towards. This means emerging food trends, distinctive flavour profiles, "better-for-you" formulations, world cuisines, and products that bring something into Tesco's range that isn't already there.

The key question a Tesco buyer is asking: Will this grow the category, or will it just cannibalise something we already sell? Incremental growth is the phrase to understand here. Your product needs to attract new spending, not just shift customers from one existing product to another.

Community

Tesco places heavy weight on who's behind the brand. It actively prioritises brands led by people from under-represented backgrounds -- female founders, ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ founders, people with disabilities, and founders from diverse socio-economic backgrounds. In its second 2024 cohort, 10 of the 16 accepted brands were diverse- or women-owned.

This isn't tokenism. Tesco is building a supply base that reflects its customer base, which spans the full breadth of UK society. If your brand story involves a founder from an under-represented background, that is a genuine competitive advantage in this process.

Planet

Sustainability matters, but it has to be real and verifiable. Tesco looks for brands actively reducing their environmental impact across the full supply chain -- not just brands that say they care about the planet. Regenerative agriculture, reduced packaging, plant-based innovation, and circular economy approaches all score well here.

4. Sainsbury's Future Brands: What It Was and What Changed

For over five years, Sainsbury's Future Brands was considered the gold standard of UK supermarket challenger brand programmes. Launched in 2018, it gave brands a dedicated team to approach -- a single front door into a major retailer. Its reputation was so strong that, in supplier surveys, it consistently ranked as the most well-known and impactful scheme of its kind.

The brands it helped launch or accelerate include some genuinely impressive names: Tony's Chocolonely, Smol, Tails.com, La Vie, Beavertown, Wasabi. These aren't niche curiosities. Several are now household names.

The programme worked by:

• Offering exclusive trial bays ("Taste of the Future") in around 69 superstores
• Testing products with real shoppers for 14-week windows
• Judging success on a mix of sales data, consumer panel feedback, and category fit -- not just raw numbers
• Providing free access to Sainsbury's sales data and mentoring support

But in late 2024, as part of CEO Simon Roberts' "Next Level" three-year strategy, Sainsbury's restructured. The standalone Future Brands team was folded into a broader product direction team, integrated fully with category management.

"We will work in partnership with our trading category teams to best support new challenger brands through the Thrive model, fully integrating them within category plans." -- Claire Hughes, Director of Product and Innovation, Sainsbury's, 2024

What this means in practice: there is no longer a dedicated "Future Brands" front door for external challenger brands. The team that handled them now has a wider remit -- including growing Sainsbury's own-label range, which competes directly with the challenger brands it used to exclusively champion.

Sainsbury's has said it will continue onboarding challenger brands. But the process is now integrated into standard category management, not a separate programme with its own clear entry point.

5. The Sainsbury's Thrive Model: What Still Exists

The Thrive strand of Sainsbury's work is the one part of its challenger brand support that remains clearly defined -- but it has a very specific focus.

Thrive with Sainsbury's was launched in 2022 as a UK first: a free 16-week programme designed specifically to support Black founder-led brands. The £1 million commitment behind it included:

• A £20,000 welcome grant for each of the nine participating brands
• Over 150 hours of one-to-one practical support and group learning
• Additional funding available up to £105,000 per brand that achieved a listing
• A Dragon's Den-style pitch to Sainsbury's category and buying teams at the end

The first three brands to come through and win shelf listings were Mirror Margarita, Riddles Tequila Ice Tea, and Raise Snacks.

"Thrive has been totally transformative, both for my business and for Black-founded businesses in food and drink." -- Chester Robinson, Founder of Raise Snacks

Sainsbury's has committed to continuing the Thrive programme and is looking ahead to further iterations. It is delivered in partnership with Foundervine and Mission Ventures.

If you are a Black founder-led brand at an early stage, Thrive is one of the most well-resourced and genuinely supportive routes into UK grocery that currently exists. The funding is real, the mentoring is hands-on, and the listing pathway is direct.

Sainsbury's Thrive: Key Stats
-------------------------------------------
Launched:          2022
Total commitment:  £1 million
Programme length:  16 weeks
Grant per brand:   £20,000 welcome grant + up to £105,000 on listing
Eligible brands:   Black founder-led UK food and drink businesses
Partner orgs:      Foundervine, Mission Ventures
Brands listed:     Mirror Margarita, Riddles Ice Tea, Raise Snacks (first cohort)

6. Head-to-Head: Tesco Accelerator vs. Sainsbury's (2025-2026)

Here's the direct comparison that most founders are actually trying to make when they search for this topic.

7. What Supermarket Buyers Actually Want (The Unfiltered Version)

Whether you're pitching Tesco's Accelerator team or navigating Sainsbury's category buying route, the fundamental thing buyers are evaluating is the same. And it's often not what founders think.

Tom Forsythe, the former head of Sainsbury's Future Brands and now Managing Director of Good & Proper Tea, put it plainly in early 2025:

"Big retailers move slowly, certainly in relation to the speed at which challenger brands operate. Conversations to secure a retail listing can take 18 to 24 months, and longer in some cases." -- Tom Forsythe, former Head of Sainsbury's Future Brands / MD, Good & Proper Tea, The Grocer, 2025

That's the single most important sentence in this article. If you're expecting to go from first contact to shelf in three months, you're going to be disappointed -- and unprepared.

Here's what buyers are actually assessing, in plain terms:

Will this grow my category? A buyer isn't choosing your product in isolation. They're managing a P&L worth hundreds of millions of pounds in retail sales value annually. Your product has to justify taking the space of something already on shelf. The word buyers use is incremental -- your product needs to bring in new sales, not just move customers from one product to another.

Can you actually deliver? Shelf space is worthless if you can't keep it stocked. Buyers want to see that you have the supply chain, packaging, and operational capacity to deliver consistently. A great product that goes out of stock repeatedly will get delisted. If you want to understand the real cost of poor shelf availability, our article on on-shelf availability and stockouts explains exactly what buyers are watching.

Do you have sales proof? Listing with a smaller retailer first -- an independent deli group, a regional chain, a farm shop network -- gives you the data that makes a bigger conversation easier. A buyer at Tesco or Sainsbury's wants to see that your product sells when it's in front of shoppers. Not just that it tastes good, or that people say they'd buy it. Actual scan data from real transactions.

Are you going to help drive the launch? Buyers are not your marketing team. They want to know what you are doing to drive awareness and trial. PR plans, social campaigns, in-store sampling, brand activations -- all of these matter. The buyer needs to believe that putting you on shelf won't just sit there quietly.

Is the founder the right person? This one surprises a lot of brands. The founder pitching directly -- with genuine passion and specific knowledge of their category -- consistently performs better than a hired sales director or agency. Buyers can tell the difference. If you built the brand, you should be in the room.

8. Which Route Is Right for Your Brand?

This depends heavily on where you are in your brand's journey and what your story is.

You're an early-stage food or drink brand, under two years old, with a point of difference

Try Tesco Accelerator first. The programme is designed for exactly this stage. You don't need to be retail-ready before applying (though it helps). The 12-month support structure is designed to help you get there.

You're a Black founder-led brand at any stage

Sainsbury's Thrive is the strongest dedicated route in UK grocery right now. The funding is real (up to £105,000), the mentoring is intensive, and the listing pathway is direct. Apply when the next iteration opens.

You're a female founder or from another under-represented background

Tesco Accelerator actively prioritises you. Ten of the 16 brands in the second 2024 cohort were diverse- or women-owned. Make your founder story central to your application.

You have a strong sustainability or health and wellness angle

Both retailers value this, but Tesco's Planet pillar makes it an explicit selection criterion. Regenerative sourcing, plant-based, reduced packaging, and "better-for-you" all score well.

You're a more established challenger brand with existing retail presence and proven sales data

The Sainsbury's category buyer route may be more appropriate. You're past the incubator stage. What you need is a direct commercial conversation with the right buyer, built on your existing proof points. Our guide on range review preparation and data packs will help you structure that conversation properly.

You have genuine world cuisine, specialist, or community-driven products

Tesco's Community pillar is specifically designed for brands that reflect the diversity of Tesco's customer base. Products from South Asian, East African, Caribbean, or other community food traditions have a strong story to tell here. The 2025 cohort included brands like All The Aunties (British-milk paneer) and Kulcher (plant-based ready meals) for exactly this reason.

9. The Wider Landscape: You Don't Have to Choose Between Just Two

Tesco and Sainsbury's are not your only routes into UK grocery. For early-stage brands especially, it's worth knowing what else is available.

Co-op Incubator & Accelerator Launched in 2022, the Co-op scheme has helped 27 suppliers get listed with over 70 products now on shelf. It focuses on purpose-led brands with a strong diversity and inclusion angle, and in 2024 expanded to include a separate accelerator track for brands at different growth stages. Recent brands include Cheeky Nibble and ELEAT Cereal.

Ocado Roots Designed for brands not yet listed with any major supermarket, Ocado Roots offers tailored onboarding, faster payment terms, free access to Ocado's insights tool (Beet), and a community of mentoring brands. It's a lower-volume route but builds the online proof of concept that offline buyers want to see.

Iceland Accelerator A newer scheme that invites brands to pitch exclusive product ideas to Iceland's buyers. Successful brands receive a minimum £100,000 in investment along with manufacturing, branding, and activation support. Products launch exclusively in Iceland or Food Warehouse stores.

10. Practical Steps: How to Maximise Your Chances

Whether you're going for the Tesco Accelerator, Sainsbury's Thrive, or a direct buyer conversation, these are the moves that actually make a difference.

Build sales proof before you apply. Scan data from any retail environment -- independents, farm shops, regional chains -- is worth more than any amount of consumer survey data. Show that real people are buying your product at retail prices.

Prepare your category argument. Don't just explain what your product is. Explain what it does for the category. What gap does it fill? What type of shopper does it attract that isn't currently buying in this category? For more on how to frame this, our guide to winning JBP season as a mid-market FMCG brand covers the commercial language buyers respond to.

Use LinkedIn properly. Finding the right buyer contact is step one. Connect with them. Share relevant content. Let them see your brand developing over time. Don't cold-pitch in a DM -- build familiarity first. As the former head of Sainsbury's Future Brands put it: hustle, not hassle.

Attend trade shows -- but go to meet, not just to exhibit. Food and Drink Expo, IFE, Fine Food Speciality are all places where buyers walk the floor. If you're exhibiting, make sure your buyer knows you're there. If you're not exhibiting, go anyway and do the rounds.

Send regular updates to your target buyers. Not spam -- meaningful updates. A new listing. A press mention. A strong social video. A sales milestone. These keep your brand in the buyer's peripheral vision without being overbearing.

Get your data pack ready. When a buyer does engage, the conversation will move to numbers fast. Have your category data, your rate of sale from existing listings, your distribution figures, and your growth trajectory ready to share clearly. Our range review data pack guide walks through exactly what to include.

For the Tesco Accelerator specifically: complete your RangeMe profile thoroughly before the application window opens. Applications are reviewed partly on profile completeness. Make sure your product photography, ingredients, certifications, and brand story are all up to date.

11. Key Lessons for Challenger Brands

Lesson 1: The front door has moved at Sainsbury's -- don't spend months knocking on the wrong one

The Future Brands team that brands spent five years building relationships with no longer exists as a standalone function. If you're approaching Sainsbury's in 2025 or 2026 through the old route, you'll likely find yourself bounced around. The Thrive strand is active and well-resourced. The general challenger brand route now goes through category buyers -- which means you need to do your homework on who manages your specific category.

Ask yourself: Do I know the name of the Sainsbury's category buyer responsible for my specific product type? If not, start there.

Lesson 2: Tesco's programme is genuinely open -- but the window is short

The Tesco Accelerator isn't just good PR. It's a functioning programme with real listings, real mentoring, and real commercial terms. But the application windows are tight, they open once or twice a year, and the review process moves quickly. Missing a window means waiting months for the next one.

Ask yourself: Is my RangeMe profile up to date, and do I know when the next Tesco Accelerator window opens?

Lesson 3: Diversity is a commercial criterion now, not just an ethical one

Both Tesco and Sainsbury's are building supply bases that reflect the UK's population. If you're a founder from an under-represented background, that's a genuine commercial advantage in these processes -- not something to mention briefly at the end of your pitch, but something to lead with.

Ask yourself: Is my brand's founder story central to how I'm presenting to retailers? If not, why not?

Lesson 4: Being listed is the start, not the finish

Getting on shelf at Tesco or Sainsbury's is not the end goal. It's the beginning of a commercial relationship that requires constant attention. Rate of sale, shelf availability, promotional participation, and category review performance all determine whether you stay listed. We covered the Tesco-specific side of this in our article on getting into Tesco and staying listed through category review.

Ask yourself: Do I have a plan for what happens after listing day? Marketing, sampling, social, and trade spend all need to be ready before you hit the shelf.

12. Actionable Recommendations

For Food and Drink Brand Founders

• Apply to the Tesco Accelerator if you're an early-stage brand with a clear point of difference -- the next window typically opens in late 2025 / early 2026
• If you're a Black founder-led brand, monitor Sainsbury's Thrive for the next cohort and prioritise that application
• Build your RangeMe profile now, even before an application window opens
• Gather scan data from any existing retail listings -- even small ones -- before approaching major buyers
• Start building relationships with buyers 12-18 months before you want to be on shelf

For FMCG Suppliers and Brands With Existing Distribution

• The general Sainsbury's route is now a direct category buyer conversation -- identify your buyer, prepare your category argument, and approach with proof points
• Use the Tesco Insights Platform (discounted via the Accelerator, or available commercially) to understand how your category is performing before you pitch
• Consider building your proof-of-concept through Co-op, Ocado Roots, or Iceland's scheme before approaching Tesco or Sainsbury's at scale

For B2B Leaders Supporting Challenger Brands

• Help brands understand that 18-24 months is a realistic timeline for a major supermarket listing -- not a failure, just the reality
• Prioritise building data assets early: scan data, rate-of-sale evidence, and category growth arguments are the currency of buyer conversations
• The RangeMe platform is now a genuine route to Tesco -- supporting brands in building strong profiles there is tangible, actionable help

Final Summary

Ready to Build a Smarter Route Into UK Retail?

Understanding the programmes is one thing. Building the commercial strategy, the data pack, and the buyer relationship that actually gets you listed is another. At GrowSights, we work with mid-market food and drink brands navigating exactly this challenge -- from getting retail-ready to surviving the first category review.

If you're a brand at the point where a major supermarket listing is the next step, start a conversation with us. We'll tell you whether you're ready, what's missing, and what the fastest realistic route looks like for your specific brand.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I apply to the Tesco Accelerator Programme? Applications are submitted via the RangeMe platform (rangeme.com). New applicants can create a free account. The Tesco Accelerator window typically opens in early each year and closes in March. You can also contact the team at acceleratorprogramme@tesco.com. Make sure your RangeMe profile is complete and up to date before applying.

Is the Tesco Accelerator free to apply for? Yes, if you're a new applicant creating a RangeMe account for the first time, there's no fee. Existing RangeMe free-tier users may need to upgrade to a paid subscription to access the campaign. Starter, Premium, and Pro subscribers can apply at no additional cost.

Does Sainsbury's still have a challenger brand programme in 2025? Sainsbury's closed its standalone Future Brands team in 2024 as part of its "Next Level" strategy restructure. The Thrive programme (for Black founder-led brands) remains active and is the clearest structured route in. For other brands, the pathway is now through Sainsbury's standard category buyers rather than a dedicated innovation team.

How long does it take to get listed in Tesco or Sainsbury's? Realistically, 12 to 24 months from first contact to shelf for most brands. The Tesco Accelerator compresses this significantly for accepted brands. The Sainsbury's Thrive programme runs 16 weeks with a direct listing pitch at the end. A cold approach to a standard buyer typically takes 18-24 months or more.

What do Tesco buyers look for in new brands? Tesco evaluates all Accelerator applicants against three pillars: Customer (innovation and point of difference), Community (diverse founders and community-giving brands), and Planet (sustainability credentials). Across all buying conversations, the key question is whether your product will grow the category -- not just substitute existing sales.

Do I need to be retail-ready before applying to the Tesco Accelerator? It is preferred but not required. Tesco has accepted brands at early stages of development. That said, having at least some retail-ready packaging, clear pricing, and some proof of consumer interest (even from DTC or farmers' market sales) significantly strengthens your application.

Is Sainsbury's Thrive only for Black founders? Yes. Thrive with Sainsbury's is specifically designed for Black founder-led food and drink brands. It is not open to other founders. For all other challenger brands, the route into Sainsbury's is via the category buyer team or through Sainsbury's general supplier contact channels.

What is the Sainsbury's Taste of the Future programme? Taste of the Future was the trial bay initiative run under the former Future Brands programme, placing challenger brands in dedicated sections in around 69 superstores for 14-week trial windows. With the restructure of Future Brands in 2024, the format of these trials may continue in modified form under the new product direction team structure, but is no longer a separately branded programme.

Can I approach both Tesco and Sainsbury's at the same time? Yes, and many brands do. There's no exclusivity requirement for applying to Tesco's Accelerator. Running parallel conversations with different retailers is normal. Be transparent with buyers about your distribution strategy if asked.

What other supermarket programmes exist for challenger brands in the UK? Co-op runs an Incubator and Accelerator for purpose-led brands (27 suppliers listed since 2022). Ocado Roots supports pre-listed brands with data tools and fast payment terms. Iceland's Accelerator offers minimum £100,000 in investment for brands willing to launch exclusively with them. Morrisons and Asda also have local and regional supplier programmes worth exploring for smaller or regional brands.

Research sources: Tesco PLC press releases (Feb 2024, Sept 2024); Grocery Gazette; The Grocer; RangeMe / Tesco Accelerator FAQ 2025; British Baker (Feb 2026); Retail Week; Sainsbury's Corporate Press Office; Consumer Edge UK Grocery Market Share Report 2025; Kantar Grocery Market Share Data 2025; IFE (International Food and Drink Event) 2025; GS1 UK supplier insights; Foundervine / Mission Ventures programme materials.

Published by GrowSights | UK Retail Intelligence and Growth Strategy | Point of View