daymare 
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If not for Wal-Mart, many people (us included) would have a difficult time affording the basics of life. I do not mean big screen televisions or anything like that. I mean food, clothing, school supplies, etc.
Thanks for the information, Lesley. It's nice to learn what goes on in other parts of the world.
Reply #3341. Sep 11 11, 8:53 AM
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| Oatmeal25
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I understand that Wal-Mart offers good prices, but at the expense of small-town merchants who've performed valuable services for years in their rural or semi-rural communities: I've seen their deleterious effect close up. I occasionally shop there myself--economic times being what they are--but it does go against my principles. I'm not here to argue for or against Wal-Mart, just to agree with Lesley that large corporations sometimes swallow up small businesses.
But this is getting off the track: Lesley's talking about Tesco and its practices in her very own town. Lesley, back to you, and good luck with your protest!
Reply #3342. Sep 11 11, 9:22 AM
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daymare
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Oh, excuse me.
Reply #3344. Sep 11 11, 9:52 AM
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| lesley153
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Steve, what's your interest? Thank you, yes these links are of interest. I was pleasantly surprised to see how quickly the "BRATS" website was updated, too. The question we decided to ask is as simple as we could make it - it took a lot of discussion and shows of hands to agree how broad it should be. Do we include the words "close proximity"? Do we mention other nearby shopping parades that might get embellished with a mini-Tesco of its own, or a miniature version of any other supermarket chain?
In the end, we agreed that we would tailor the question to fit the current predicament: Tesco want to convert an unused pub into a small Tesco, and we don't want them to. If they or anyone else want to convert anything here or somewhere else, we'll worry about it when it happens.
"Do we want the ex-pub to become a Tesco?"
"No we don't!"
Isn't local democracy a wonderful thing?
Thank you, Oatmeal, all moral support gratefully accepted.
Daymare, we have Wal-Mart here too, and it's called Asda. Prices in Asda are, I believe, generally kept significantly lower than Sainsbury and Tesco prices. Sainsbury used to be Tesco's slightly classier, slightly more expensive twin, but not any more - the classiness ratio remains roughly the same, but Tesco prices have crept up quietly till many of them have overtaken Sainsbury. If we want cheap, we can go to Lidl in the town centre (sorry I forgot to mention them). A lot of their non-food items are very low of price indeed, and people say that their fresh produce is half supermarket prices and much fresher. Or the market. If you want to eat for pennies, go to the market when they're packing up!
One more disappointment is that mini-Tesco prices aren't the same as big-Tesco prices. When they take over corner shops, they charge corner shop prices: because they can. They won't have anywhere near the range of a supermarket, because they don't need to. So it might be convenient for people who live within walking distance, but it won't save them any money, or give them any more choice. Any petrol money they save will be swallowed up by higher prices, and they'll still have to go further afield to get the other things they want.
For people who live within stone-throwing distance, the extra daytime traffic, the deliveries in the small hours, with lorries coming and going, and beeping as they reverse; engines running, drivers slamming doors and shouting and swearing; they're going to destroy lives.
There is also a possibility that parents of local schoolchildren will be so worried about that, that they will drive their children to school rather than letting them walk, thereby trebling rush hour traffic. Brickhill Drive will become on big traffic jam.
I can't think of anything good that would come out of Tesco's proposal, but I can think of an awful lot of bad, starting with local business dropping like flies, and a large increase in the number of children involved in traffic accidents. |
Reply #3345. Sep 11 11, 10:33 AM
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daymare
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Thanks for the response, Lesley. I apologize for mentioning Wal-Mart at all.
Reply #3346. Sep 11 11, 10:44 AM
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Professer
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Tescos also own shops called ONE STOP, the prices there are worse then the tesco extras. A local shop sold out to them, and business has dropped 43% in 6 weeks.
Staff have been told unless they can improve turnover the store will close.
But who is going to pay 30p more for a loaf of bread when co-op next door has same bread 30p cheaper.
Reply #3347. Sep 11 11, 10:56 AM
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| lesley153
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Does that mean "I'm sorry I said anything now"? Don't be! because if you are I shall have to apologise for banging on about a load of different supermarkets, and I don't want to do that.
What I want to do now is have a rant about Lamp. Lamp doesn't work. **gnashes teeth and wails** It's covered more than 500 miles, if you count the unscheduled trip to South Kensington, and now it's here at last it's a complete waste of space and quite a lot of money.
Because I fall asleep fairly quickly now, thank goodness, it took me a couple of days to realise that I must have been sleeping all night with the light on full. It's supposed to fade gradually at bedtime, and come on gradually at waking-up time, and it does neither, When it's switched on, it's either on... or on. Once it's on, the only way to switch it off is to unplug it - or take the bulb out.
This means that I have paid about eighty quid for a glorified alarm clock. Grrr!
I have written a buttock-clenchingly, icily polite email to the company. The alternative is phoning them, and I've already spoken to the office manager, who seems pleasant enough, and does seem to understand Words but not Sentences. Every time I asked her something, she completely missed the point.
Example:
Q The label on the base of the lamp says "max 60W tungsten or 42W halogen." The instruction booklet says max 40W tungsten or 42W halogen. Which is right?
A "It doesn't matter, because we've sent you a 42W halogen bulb."
Yes it does! Argh!
If I don't hear fairly soon, I shall phone them. You will probably hear the screams. |
Reply #3348. Sep 11 11, 11:07 AM
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| lesley153
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| Business has dropped, Gary? That's actually a ray of hope. Not for the staff who are being threatened, or their replacements, who will agree to work for pennies, but for the rest of the world. Tesco may see a message in their failure. Keep your sticky hands off our independent shops, and stop insulting us with your inflated prices. |
Reply #3349. Sep 11 11, 11:10 AM
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bloodandsand
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Unfortunately, Lesley, I don't think that will happen. There's a large Tesco 24 hour store within a mile of my house and it's convenient for calling in on my way home from work to stock up. However, the local (within a five minute walk) butcher's, greengrocer's fishmonger's and newsagent's shops have all closed within the last 18 months.
Reply #3350. Sep 11 11, 11:28 AM
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daymare
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I wish we still had butcher, greengrocer, fishmonger and newsagent shops. There are a few streets in Denver where these types of shops once existed.
I miss those days. When neighbors quit being neighborhoods and many moved to suburbs, that's when the changes began.
Not all change is good. I loved 'Mom and Pop' shops.
Reply #3351. Sep 11 11, 11:35 AM
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| lesley153
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It's sad that we're losing specialist shops. There were (for instance) a few fishmongers in Bedford when we moved here, but no more. They have been replaced by supermarket sections, staffed by people some of whom "haven't been trained" to prepare fish.
I wonder how many of the people who are so vehemently opposed to the new Tesco will "pop in there, anyway" for the odd pint of milk or newspaper. Soon they won't have the choice.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A couple of years ago, Jonathan was trained to drive a college minibus, and took one, containing a selection of musicians and their instruments, to Canterbury for the weekend, and back. Today he is driving a minibus in Poland. But they drive on the wrong side of the road! It's gone OK. The temperature is currently about 30 degrees, and he is happy.
He's also promised me lots of pictures. I expect most of them to feature food. |
Reply #3352. Sep 11 11, 11:53 AM
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Professer
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Lesley the rot set in with the previous manager to be honest, he was constantly slagging off the siock disabled and unmployed, which put up a lot of peoples backs, considering that 79% of the customers are on benefits of some sort.
He even used to say wehn women reached 60 and men 65 they should be put down.
He is now 65 and retired still pops in shop, so said your still with us then , he said yes why and some elderly ladyt said you said men should be put down at 65, thanked the lady for saving me saying it and he stormed off lol
Reply #3353. Sep 11 11, 12:59 PM
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| lesley153
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| Ooh that's another way of ruining a shop - give it a rubbish manager. |
Reply #3354. Sep 11 11, 2:12 PM
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| lesley153
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| Going to bed now, with my ridiculously expensive alarm clock. Looking forward to a reply to my email but not holding my breath. Night everyone. :) |
Reply #3355. Sep 11 11, 7:56 PM
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daymare
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Damaged in shipment. Yes, that is the cause of the light not working. Who knows what terrible things that lamp has been though. So many, unnecessary, miles. Anyone could have tampered with it. Conflicting instructions. Inefficient customer service.
No wonder the darned thing doesn't work. It gave it.
Goodnight.
Reply #3356. Sep 11 11, 8:09 PM
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daymare
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It gave up! Too long of a day.
Reply #3357. Sep 11 11, 8:10 PM
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| lesley153
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I think you're right. Cardboard and bubble wrap can only offer so much protection. It would have been perfectly adequate for a thirty-mile trip, but not several trips totalling more than five hundred miles.
I've asked for their best suggestions. My best suggestion is that they send a courier to collect the redundant piece of junk and give me my money back. In the real world they'll probably tell me to send it back to them, which means re-packing, schlepping to the Post Office, paying return postage...
A few years ago, I bought a cooking thingy from Lakeland Ltd. It worked perfectly for years, and then packed up. The light was on but it wasn't getting hot. I rang Lakeland and asked for advice about getting it repaired. I was told that everything they sell has a lifetime guarantee. They sent a courier who took away the non-functioning one and brought me a new one. I can't wait to see how the service from this lot will compare. I'm not getting my hopes up. |
Reply #3358. Sep 11 11, 8:32 PM
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daymare
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I have a suggestion for what they may do with the lamp but it is very naughty.
At least the passage would be well-lit.
They better give you a new one, collect the old one and apologize like they've never done before. So far, their reputation as a company is lacking in many aspects.
You are one strong person to sleep through the light being on. I would be wide awake cussing the thing out before unplugging it while making a few suggestions as to its future use.
I am a bad girl....lol
Hey, I thought you were going to sleep. Missed me, eh?
Reply #3359. Sep 11 11, 8:37 PM
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| lesley153
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The first couple of times, I fell asleep quickly and didn't notice. It was only on the third night that I didn't fall asleep straight away. I tried a few things to make it dim and then I gave up, and just screamed and swore instead. I hope the people next door were impressed by the inventiveness of my vocabulary.
"At least the passage would be well-lit." That is the most wonderfully funny and naughty thing I've read all day.
I started saying goodnight more than an hour ago, but couldn't tear myself away. And now I really am going to bed. Goodnight children everywhere! :)
(((((())))))
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Reply #3360. Sep 11 11, 8:45 PM
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