From Bristol Evening Post, Thu 28th Jan, 2010
"It's [a new Tesco Metro] only 100 yards from my shop. With Tesco opening, we will become less profitable than we are now and other shops in the street will struggle.
Tesco has a very astute policy of targeting neighbourhoods. They will be able to stock a large range of organic goods at prices I can buy them at wholesale.
The company doesn't have any ethics other than making money. Will it encourage people to buy cornflakes in my shop? No. People will go somewhere where they are on sale for three pence less."
Richard Fox, owner of Radford Mill Farm Shop, which has traded in Picton Street for 31 years
This scenario seems to be repeated across the UK alongside new small, medium and large Tesco outlets.. It's all about the money for them seemingly, ideas of 'local' and 'community' don't seem to feature in their vocabulary.
More [here]
High Streets are "organic" places, traders come and go according to trends and need. UK didn't keep the mines open because they were not cost effective, it's the same in the high street. Only the best survive. I don't expect people to have to bail out my job if the company is no longer viable, why should shops be any different?
ReplyDeleteUnderstand what you're saying and agree to some extent.. I think the point here though is that the businesses in the highstreet in Tenbury are [in the main] presently viable.
ReplyDeleteThe people of Tenbury have a decision to make though.. Whether or not to introduce a "wildcard" into that equation - that being a Tesco Superstore at one end of town. If they reject the Tesco bid then the same small businesses will no doubt remain more or less viable. If a superstore is built though that's likely to be the trigger for the gradual demise of the highstreet [as with so many other small town precedents]. So it's all really about the choice made by the public in this case and not presently the viability of the small businesses.