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]
Friends of the Earth Food and Farming Campaigner Sandra Bell said:See the full article [here]."Tesco's success has made it immensely powerful - a position that it is clearly abusing by putting small traders out of business and killing off local high streets, bullying suppliers, and damaging the environment through its never ending demand for cheap food. The evidence against Tesco can no longer be ignored. It is time for the Government to regulate and tame this corporate beast."
These include:
Shopkeepers in the Norfolk town of Stalham have told Friends of the Earth how Tesco has damaged their business and backtracked on promises made when it moved to the town.
In the nearby market town of Sheringham, traders said a new Tesco store, recently granted planning permission despite strong local opposition, will destroy the town's special appeal to tourists and ruin their livelihoods.
Pensioners in Witney, Oxfordshire are angry about the way Tesco took over stores in the town and threatened to close the post office in the stores, a vital local service. To date, Tesco has been allowed to take over convenience store chains with no investigation or intervention from the competition authorities.
South African suppliers have described the way in which Tesco pushes prices down and makes unreasonable demands for expensive packaging that must be paid for by the supplier. Workers describe how this impacts on them in lack of employment rights and poor conditions including lack of protective clothing.
Farmers describe how Tesco has ignored their pleas for fairer prices and the impacts this has on the environment and rural communities. They say a stricter code of practice is essential.
[From Boston Borough Council's Website, Jan 2010]
Cllr Richard Dungworth, said: “This seeks to make better use of the area. It has been primarily,dominated by car parking for many years and while the general view is that some parking must be maintained the overriding view coming forward is that we need to give it back to the people, with better pedestrianised areas and the opportunity for new social uses.
“The Market Place should be more than just a car park and we should be seeking to maximise on its historic setting and layout, and attract more people to come in to use it, enjoy it and shop in it. Interestingly during the public consultation period, of those who participated, 44% thought that the Market Place would benefit from less parking and a further 19% thought it should contain no parking at all.”
The borough council identified regeneration of the Market Place, one that has been in existence for around 900 years, as a vital project to improve the appearance of the town, help develop the local economy, and help further establish Boston as a great visitor destination.
"The scheme will champion both local retail and tourism and give opportunities to more local people to bring their produce direct to market or to train as a new marketer."
RT2 says that a Pannier Market for Newport will act as a focus and showcase for local produce and traders, and give a flexible and vibrant trading opportunity to both marketeers and shoppers.
"A market place gives an opportunity to bring together a sense of belonging and definition within our local rural community, and offers a 'window' to Island visitors and tourists," said Sarah.
The permanent market place will include:
- an all-weather trading area and drop-off zone;
- market ‘shoplets’;
- a market plaza;
- a café showcasing local and fresh market produce;
- a training space;
- public WC facilities.
See the full article [here].
Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but the pledge at the outset of the planning process was for 300 jobs. To be fair to Tesco, they stated “up to 300”, which means any number from one to 299. In essence, though, there was an expectation that the number would be far nearer 300 than one. At the time of opening, this was scaled down by a third, to “over 200” according to the Free Press (27 July 2006) and 150, according to Tesco’s own publicity.
Reports in the media (June 2006) suggest this is actually a mere 180, many of whom are part time. Judging by the faces of those in Tesco uniform, a substantial number are non-local, not that that is intrinsically wrong.
I’ve heard from a former (non-Tesco) supermarket manager that the likelihood is that as soon as trade settles into a predictable pattern Tesco will cut its workforce. As staff leave, they will not be replaced; redundancy will be avoided but is never ruled out. This, he says, is standard supermarket practice.
Using research in the United States, Cymuned, the Welsh anti-colonial organisation, estimates that the net increase in employment upon the arrival of a supermarket, when you take into account the loss of town-centre jobs, is a mere 10 over the course of five years. Yes, 10. Cymuned states in Britain there could even be a net loss. And, with a supermarket, some 14 per cent of profit is retained locally, whereas you’d expect 60 per cent with a local business, sourcing products more locally.
Shropshire Star. Saturday 6th March 2010"Hundreds of protesters marched through Oswestry today to demonstrate their opposition to plans for a new multi-million pound supermarket.The march was organised by a coalition of campaign groups who claim the new store will destroy the town’s small, independent traders."
"One local greengrocer, when Tesco’s withdrawal was announced, wrote in his shop window 'Holmfirth 1, Tesco 0".
"As many town centres testify, we have sleepwalked into a sort of monoculture. Holmfirth, however, has not. If you discount the bank and the travel agent, it does not have any “chain” stores. Every shop, be it a greengrocer’s, clothes or toy store, is independent, quirky. The one small supermarket is an ethical Co-op".
"A lot of my business is in supplying schools and restaurants,” he says. “I’m not concerned about the impact on me but on the impact on the town generally. If little shops close then places just become a big housing estate".Read it for yourself [here].
