Is the High Street doomed

[Artaxerxes]

I didn't know this was still around as I've not seen a branch in many years - Spudulike has closed.

Spudulike closes all 37 outlets as high street downturn continues

Thought it was a made up name from 90s comics till now.

Not seen a store ever. Baked spuds are one of those things I associate with uber cheap high steets. Just usually it's some bloke and a wagon.

 

[killer b]

Yeah, just where are those mysterious 37 branches?

This site suggests the nearest one to me is in Stoke on Trent.

There was one until fairly recently in the arndale food hall...

 

[farmerbarleymow]

There was one until fairly recently in the arndale food hall...

I don't think I've set foot in there for years, which would explain my ignorance.

 

[OzT]

Is not 'Arndale' the most popular name for centres in England?

 

[OzT]

ooo just googled it and this is what is said:

Arndale Centres were the first "American style" malls to be built in the United Kingdom. In total, twenty three Arndales have been built in the United Kingdom, and three in Australia. The first opened in Jarrow in 1961, as a pedestrianised shopping area.

 

[farmerbarleymow]

Is not 'Arndale' the most popular name for centres in England?

Yeah, it was a generic name. I think the Manchester one was the biggest (too big really as it dominates the retail core).

 

[pinkmonkey]

Some bloke on LBC yesterday who runs a small business supplying ear drops said Boots are the worst for payment. Even worse since they were taken over by Walgreens. Apparently they have 105 days payment terms and they gave themselves a discount if they pay within that!

He fucked them off for Amazon and now gets paid on time and has seen significant growth in sales.

The worst discounting thing I ever hear of is when retailers decide they need to refit their stores, so ask for enormous discounts from their suppliers. Or rather they tried to, because their suppliers said they’d have to sell at a loss, in order to do so. House of Fraser and M & S tried this on. It’s greedy and entitled, so I don’t feel sad that they’re finding it tough. I used to work for an Asda supplier and they expected the supplier to fund the ‘roll-back’ discount.

 

[hash tag]

Many of the large retailers bully suppliers into giving discounts all the time. This is partly why we don't have so many farmers anymore. They were/are getting paid less than the cost of production.

 

[pinkmonkey]

Many of the large retailers bully suppliers into giving discounts all the time. This is partly why we don't have so many farmers anymore. They were/are getting paid less than the cost of production.

Yes on the high street its relentless, everywhere you turn it's discounts discounts and they will even try and use their quality controllers to claim something is faulty so they can return a slow selling line.
And they pay peanuts to freelancers like me and I can't live on it. So I now work mostly with British manufacturers and small European factories and clients that sell direct to customer. I only work with one high street priced supplier as they are a family business and local to me, but they don't supply the high street, only a handful of boutiques and mostly big online businesses. They supply websites worldwide and I've noticed there isn't the relentless demand for discounts like the big Brit chains used to have. Apart from Amazon, where I know a lot of brands refused to supply them via their buying dept. As they were far worse and would sell below r.r.p. upsetting your other customers who couldn't afford to discount. I know one Chinese supplier selling direct on Amazon (ebay style) and doing well. I also remember back in the day (going back to 1990's here when I worked for a supplier) the bribing of buyers at M&S by suppliers got so out of hand - with buyers being gifted cars, holidays and in one case I heard, having an extension on their house paid for - that M&S had to impose a complete ban on gifts. They obviously felt entitled to those bribes themselves - it was 2011 when they demanded £600million from suppliers for store refits. Capitalism - it's a dirty business.

 

[hash tag]

I hear that Tesco's are closing 153 metro stores at a loss of 4500 jobs.
we don't use Tesco's as they were as bad as they come for bullying suppliers. They have put lots of little businness's out of business. They have land banked simply to prevent rivals opening up and/or for the investment in the land. I believe they are questionable employers.
Despite this, I am desperately sorry for all their staff who are losing jobs.

 

[Poi E]

Land banking is a time honoured tradition in these isles. You have a monarch and her relatives who've been at it for centuries, the treacherous fuckers.

 

[pinkmonkey]

I hear that Tesco's are closing 153 metro stores at a loss of 4500 jobs.
we don't use Tesco's as they were as bad as they come for bullying suppliers. They have put lots of little businness's out of business. They have land banked simply to prevent rivals opening up and/or for the investment in the land. I believe they are questionable employers.
Despite this, I am desperately sorry for all their staff who are losing jobs.

I get a call from them about every 6 months wanting freelance design help. Their day rate is the shitest of all and they are always looking for help. Like a lot of companies, it's a tax dodge, always 4 days a week working in their office so you end up cramming what should be a full time job into four days and being too knackered to work for anyone else, which is a big risk if you don't have a contract.

 

[cupid_stunt]

I hear that Tesco's are closing 153 metro stores at a loss of 4500 jobs.
we don't use Tesco's as they were as bad as they come for bullying suppliers. They have put lots of little businness's out of business. They have land banked simply to prevent rivals opening up and/or for the investment in the land. I believe they are questionable employers.
Despite this, I am desperately sorry for all their staff who are losing jobs.

I can't see anything about store closures, just a massive reduction in staffing levels, an average of around 15 jobs per store in the plan.

Around 4,500 Tesco staff are set to lose their jobs thanks to changes in the way it runs its Metro and Express stores, the company has announced.

All 153 Metro stores and 134 Express stores are being targeted, but big shops don't escape entirely, with "localised" changes in the larger branches too.

Tesco axe 4,500 jobs across Metro and Express stores in latest round of cuts

 

[hash tag]

The closures were on the initial reports on the radio earlier. Still very sad for Thousands of staff remembering that thousands have already lost their jobs.
Flexible working and scab tills all the way then

 

[hash tag]

Not all bad news? Retailers shut 2,870 stores in first half of 2019

 

[Poi E]

Shitter for councils that rely on commercial rates. Guess those vast shopping centres will become lots of little apartments like cruise ships, with atriums and stuff. Could fill them with prefabricated units.

 

[pesh]

Legalise weed, turn them into grow rooms. Profit.

 

[Dogsauce]

Shitter for councils that rely on commercial rates. Guess those vast shopping centres will become lots of little apartments like cruise ships, with atriums and stuff. Could fill them with prefabricated units.

Javid & Johnson want a load of new jails, use them for that. Most of them aren’t very easy to get out of already.

 

[cybershot]

Sainsbury’s to close 70 Argos stores as part of reorganisation

This will probably almost guarantee my local goes, as the nearest Sainsbury’s already has one in store. Which is utterly crap no surprise.

 

[SpookyFrank]

Sainsbury’s to close 70 Argos stores as part of reorganisation

This will probably almost guarantee my local goes, as the nearest Sainsbury’s already has one in store. Which is utterly crap no surprise.

If anyone feels nostalgic for the Argos experience, you can recreate it by simply buying a product from a normal shop and then kicking it down a flight of stairs.

 

[cupid_stunt]

Sainsbury’s to close 70 Argos stores as part of reorganisation

This will probably almost guarantee my local goes, as the nearest Sainsbury’s already has one in store. Which is utterly crap no surprise.

TBF, it was always part of the plan when they took over Argos, three years ago.

It was reported at the time that up to 200 Argos stores would close, as more people are ordering online rather than in-store, and going for delivery or click & collect.

 

[ferdinand]

The High Streets are booming. Tattoo Parlours abound. Hairdressers blow dry at every corner. Posh Vape stores smoke by the thousand. Takeaways sell everything you want to eat, and charity shop are a must; why buy a £1000 pound buggy when perfect kid carriers can be bought for thirty quid in Oxfam.
Cameron's pricey autobiography will fill Save The Children just after Christmas. You can't buy a screw or a bit of wood but who wants to DIY, buy a bottle of Pinot instead, there's stacks about.

 

[BristolEcho]

Late to SpudULike debate, but they were fucking shit. I had one once as I was out through work and it was the worst jacket I'd ever had. Not surprised they went bust.

 

[SpookyFrank]

Late to SpudULike debate, but they were fucking shit. I had one once as I was out through work and it was the worst jacket I'd ever had. Not surprised they went bust.

Pretty embarassaing if their whole thing is jacket potatoes and they can't even make one properly.

Mind you being unable to cook chicken properly has propelled Nandos to the brink of world domination so who even knows.

 

[skyscraper101]

Pizza Express looking iffy

Pizza Express lining up for painful debt restructuring

 

[Poi E]

The High Streets are booming. Tattoo Parlours abound. Hairdressers blow dry at every corner. Posh Vape stores smoke by the thousand. Takeaways sell everything you want to eat, and charity shop are a must; why buy a £1000 pound buggy when perfect kid carriers can be bought for thirty quid in Oxfam.
Cameron's pricey autobiography will fill Save The Children just after Christmas. You can't buy a screw or a bit of wood but who wants to DIY, buy a bottle of Pinot instead, there's stacks about.

Nail bars booming, too. Lots of shops to do money laundering.

 

[SpookyFrank]

Pizza Express looking iffy

Pizza Express lining up for painful debt restructuring

The whole mid-price dining sector is overcrowded and there's loads of new chains trying to claw their way into it. Again I suspect commercial rents are a big factor in why turnover is so high, on top of the level of competition. Oh and disposable income in real terms keeps falling, which may actually turn out to be a bad thing for capitalism in the long run. All the proposed high street bribe money the tories are talking up won't change the basic economics of things.

 

[brogdale]

Went to posh Kingston (upon Thames) yesterday (hospital visit); seemed to be quite a few shut/empty shop properties around the Market place.
Thought it was well well-off?

 

[Artaxerxes]

The whole mid-price dining sector is overcrowded and there's loads of new chains trying to claw their way into it. Again I suspect commercial rents are a big factor in why turnover is so high, on top of the level of competition. Oh and disposable income in real terms keeps falling, which may actually turn out to be a bad thing for capitalism in the long run. All the proposed high street bribe money the tories are talking up won't change the basic economics of things.

To many brands have far to many stores as w well.

Pizza Express is all over the place.

 

[SpookyFrank]

To many brands have far to many stores as w well.

Pizza Express is all over the place.

We were in a Bella Italia near Leicester square last week. Not five minutes walk from another one. We were the only customers, and we had some half price voucher. God knows what they're paying in rent for that location.