It has been a year since Philip Clarke took the helm of the UK’s largest retailer, Tesco.

It has been a year since Philip Clarke took the helm of the UK’s largest retailer, Tesco. And it has been a year in which Tesco’s crown has slipped.

The fault cannot be entirely heaped on Clarke’s doorstep though. His tenure did not have the best of beginnings, with the revelation just before he started that Laura Wade-Gery, Tesco’s online boss and potential future leader, was to defect to Marks & Spencer.

Wade-Gery’s exit was followed by those of two of Sir Terry Leahy’s longest-serving lieutenants – Lucy Neville-Rolfe, the director of corporate and legal affairs, who leaves next year, and Andy Higginson, retail services chief executive director, who leaves at the end of August.

David Potts, the boss of Tesco’s Asia operations, will also leave this year.

Unfortunately for Tesco, it’s not just the directors that have been leaving, but the customers too, judging by its recent market share declines.

Tesco’s share slipped to its lowest level since May 2005 in the 12 weeks to February 19, falling from 30.3% to 29.7% year-on-year, according to Kantar Worldpanel.

A profit warning in January and a price war in the preceding months has piled more pressure on Tesco.

But, as expected, the world’s third biggest retailer has come out fighting. This week Tesco revealed the creation of 20,000 more jobs as the grocer aims to “deliver the best shopping experience for our customers, bar none”, according to UK boss Richard Brasher.

Fresh produce will be an area of focus as it invests £300m in improving the store experience. Tesco will also relaunch its non-food online operations next week.

The grocer will also focus on growing its overseas operations, where it has trialled innovative initiatives including its virtual shopping walls in South Korea.

But with Asda returning to form, Sainsbury’s market share gains and Morrisons’ aggressive march into non-food, Clarke has little time to get the Tesco house in order and become the apple of the customer’s eye once more.