The Tesco retail chain is the 4th largest retail group in the world. The multinational empire of today is a far cry from the modest grocer's shop in Edgware, north London. 

As a child, I remember being impressed when my local Tesco in Wimbledon started stocking toys. Nowadays you can buy everything from car insurance to home furnishings - and now music. 

Yes, CDs have been available in the supermarkets for ages, and Tesco has been selling music digitally for a few years. But now the supermarket has followed in the footsteps of Starbucks and started up its own record label. Nadine Coyle, part-time singer with Girls Aloud, part-time pub landlady is the first high profile signing to the grocers label. 

It might seem a slight step backward for Coyle, particularly in the light of fellow band mate Cheryl Cole's success, but the stumbling block that many artists face is obtaining effective distribution of their product, and when it comes to distributing product, there are few companies better equipped than Tesco. The retailer has just announced another exclusive distribution deal for the popular dance act Faithless, that will see heavy promotion of the album through the national Tesco petrol station network. 

In contrast to the UK, supermarket artists appear not to suffer the same stigma in the US - a fact probably helped by acts like the Eagles and Garth Brooks entering into agreements with Wal-mart. As the old record label model continues to fade into obsolescence, supermarkets may be just what the ailing music industry needs.