Desert Island Discs - Sir Terry Leahy

Download Sir Terry Leahy

Kirsty Young's castaway is Sir Terry Leahy, the businessman and former CEO of Tesco.

His first job with the company was as a teenager when he worked as a shelf-stacker, but he made his name transforming the supermarket from a lack-lustre brand into Britain's biggest retailer.

His ascent to the very top was marked by a fundamental understanding of his customers' needs and a single minded determination, powered, he says, by a fear of failure.

He says of himself, "I was a relatively shy guy from a council estate and an unlikely chief executive, I'm quite happy not to be in the limelight".

Published on Sunday, 3rd February 2013.

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