Having ventured into the shops just before Xmas (to avoid the Dog House!), I
came away feeling they deserve their plight.
I was met with:

Assistants (M&S) talking loudly amongst themselves (complaining about their
manager) when they could have been helping me to spend more money.

Assistant in M&S unable to deal with an item as it didn't have a bar-code.
She went off to find an alternative - but failed, so I had to go.

Unable to find an assistant other than "concession staff" in Debenhams so I
came away empty handed. I was hoping to find something that my wife had seen
there earlier.

Dreary, depressing Bing Crosby songs being played.

Expensive parking


Coupled with a trip to the pub:
Wanting a pint and finding yourself behind someone ordering 6 meals with
combinations which are not set up on the till.
Getting behind someone and the debit card machine is playing up.
Standing in the "invisible" spot waiting to order.
Not wanting to interrupt the serving-kids who are chatting amongst
themselves and avoiding giving you eye-contact.
Unpolished brassware - shabby toilets - sticky tables.


I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.

"John" wrote in message
...
Having ventured into the shops just before Xmas (to avoid the Dog House!),
I came away feeling they deserve their plight.
I was met with:

Assistants (M&S) talking loudly amongst themselves (complaining about
their manager) when they could have been helping me to spend more money.

Assistant in M&S unable to deal with an item as it didn't have a bar-code.
She went off to find an alternative - but failed, so I had to go.

Unable to find an assistant other than "concession staff" in Debenhams so
I came away empty handed. I was hoping to find something that my wife had
seen there earlier.

Dreary, depressing Bing Crosby songs being played.

Expensive parking


Coupled with a trip to the pub:
Wanting a pint and finding yourself behind someone ordering 6 meals with
combinations which are not set up on the till.
Getting behind someone and the debit card machine is playing up.
Standing in the "invisible" spot waiting to order.
Not wanting to interrupt the serving-kids who are chatting amongst
themselves and avoiding giving you eye-contact.
Unpolished brassware - shabby toilets - sticky tables.


I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.

Hmmm... I feel your pain * LOL* ;-)

Happy New Year (to one and all) clink!

In message , John
wrote

Having ventured into the shops just before Xmas (to avoid the Dog House!), I
came away feeling they deserve their plight.


Coupled with a trip to the pub:
Wanting a pint and finding yourself behind someone ordering 6 meals with
combinations which are not set up on the till.
Getting behind someone and the debit card machine is playing up.
Standing in the "invisible" spot waiting to order.
Not wanting to interrupt the serving-kids who are chatting amongst
themselves and avoiding giving you eye-contact.
Unpolished brassware - shabby toilets - sticky tables.

That'll teach you to go into a JD Wetherspoon pub, or maybe not as the
'staff'' are usually too busy polishing that brassware to serve anyone.
Why do these pub chains still employ McDonald's rejects as managers
and staff?




--
Alan
news2006 {at} amac {dot} f2s {dot} com

"Alan" wrote in message
...
In message , John
wrote

Having ventured into the shops just before Xmas (to avoid the Dog House!),
I
came away feeling they deserve their plight.


Coupled with a trip to the pub:
Wanting a pint and finding yourself behind someone ordering 6 meals with
combinations which are not set up on the till.
Getting behind someone and the debit card machine is playing up.
Standing in the "invisible" spot waiting to order.
Not wanting to interrupt the serving-kids who are chatting amongst
themselves and avoiding giving you eye-contact.
Unpolished brassware - shabby toilets - sticky tables.

That'll teach you to go into a JD Wetherspoon pub, or maybe not as the
'staff'' are usually too busy polishing that brassware to serve anyone.
Why do these pub chains still employ McDonald's rejects as managers and
staff?




--
Alan
news2006 {at} amac {dot} f2s {dot} com


I must admit that a Wetherspoon example is what I had in mind - but many
others are the same (or they are depressingly quiet and lacking atmosphere
as the landlord moans about his plight.
Wetherspoon's does some good beers at a good price. I just wish they would
have some roving waiters to cream off some of the food orders. How come when
you go overseas for a holiday you always get served?

"Alan" wrote in message
...
In message , John
wrote

Having ventured into the shops just before Xmas (to avoid the Dog House!),
I
came away feeling they deserve their plight.


Coupled with a trip to the pub:
Wanting a pint and finding yourself behind someone ordering 6 meals with
combinations which are not set up on the till.
Getting behind someone and the debit card machine is playing up.
Standing in the "invisible" spot waiting to order.
Not wanting to interrupt the serving-kids who are chatting amongst
themselves and avoiding giving you eye-contact.
Unpolished brassware - shabby toilets - sticky tables.

That'll teach you to go into a JD Wetherspoon pub, or maybe not as the
'staff'' are usually too busy polishing that brassware to serve anyone.
Why do these pub chains still employ McDonald's rejects as managers and
staff?


We've never had less than really good service from Wetherspoon's staff, but
we generally only go there for breakfast, so it's less busy, and always
clean and tidy.

"OG" wrote in message
...

"Alan" wrote in message
...
In message , John
wrote

Having ventured into the shops just before Xmas (to avoid the Dog
House!), I
came away feeling they deserve their plight.


Coupled with a trip to the pub:
Wanting a pint and finding yourself behind someone ordering 6 meals with
combinations which are not set up on the till.
Getting behind someone and the debit card machine is playing up.
Standing in the "invisible" spot waiting to order.
Not wanting to interrupt the serving-kids who are chatting amongst
themselves and avoiding giving you eye-contact.
Unpolished brassware - shabby toilets - sticky tables.

That'll teach you to go into a JD Wetherspoon pub, or maybe not as the
'staff'' are usually too busy polishing that brassware to serve anyone.
Why do these pub chains still employ McDonald's rejects as managers
and staff?


We've never had less than really good service from Wetherspoon's staff,
but we generally only go there for breakfast, so it's less busy, and
always clean and tidy.
I am usually waiting behind someone who is ordering a meal and I only want a
simple pint! The transactions (logging on to the till, dealing with options,
etc) take too long

"John" wrote in message
...
Having ventured into the shops just before Xmas (to avoid the Dog House!),
I came away feeling they deserve their plight.
I was met with:

Assistants (M&S) talking loudly amongst themselves (complaining about
their manager) when they could have been helping me to spend more money.


Same thing in Burtons, apparently they hate him because he stands doing
nothing!

Assistant in M&S unable to deal with an item as it didn't have a bar-code.
She went off to find an alternative - but failed, so I had to go.


I found that in Matalan, they didn't have a clue what to do, or how to print
off a receipt. It took 10minutes for someone else to fix.

Unable to find an assistant other than "concession staff" in Debenhams so
I came away empty handed. I was hoping to find something that my wife had
seen there earlier.


That is so annoying - it's also annoying when you ask for something and
you're
given the answer, "if it is not on the shelf then no". Not even a "I'll
have a look
to see if we have any more". Even if they pretended to do it!
That spoils a surprise as you will have to take your wife back to the shop.

Dreary, depressing Bing Crosby songs being played.


Hate it, hate all the loud music in shops - I end up leaving as I can't
stand it.
There is also a law about background noise not being over a certain dB level
which shops are breaking.

Expensive parking


I don't use my local town centre now because of that, I drive 4 miles to a
different area or another 8 and park for free. No wonder the town centre
is going down the drain.

I also hate Tesco, they have huge signs which lie about being open 24hours.
They are on 4 or 5 days a week at a push, so why stack shelves and leave
huge trolleys and loose packaging in the way at 6pm at night. The checkout
people are just as bad, turning around having conversations amongst
themselves. I was told I was only allowed 4 carrier bags so piled a trolley
full of shopping in and they broke. So I stood there slowly taking ech item
out and waited until a manager come over to say I could have more. The
ignorant woman tried to continue to serve people so it took me longer.
They just don't get it. Price fixing and wild claims of sales and the
dreaded -
"HALF PRICE" is just to attract silly women and pensioners. They fight
to grab and buy items then wonder why as they didn't want them. They
just saw "half price" and went in to some frenzy.

Shops put themselves out of business. Burtons changed about 6 years ago
from a UK supplier to a cheap nasty one abroad. So the result is that the
sizes of clothes are based on the Korean size data. UK people are bigger
so you either buy something far too big and hope it fits or leave it and go
elsewhere. All of their trousers have the same leg width despite being
different waist sizes. Shirts are the correct neck size but called
"tailored" as
they are so tight the buttons fly off compared to a quality item from M&S.

There are so many things wrong with retail now, apart from skimming off
vast profits and watching companies go bankrupt, the clothes look like they
were designed by a man of questionable sexuality for women but for young
males to wear! It's all very odd now. Companies going bankrupt show
only one thing and that is bad management. Staff that haven't a clue how to
run a business. If you sell things people don't want or at a price too
high,
they will walk away. All the sale items in some shops were collected from
outlet villages in the hope people would be fooled.

There is no recession, it's just people have had enough of being ripped off
so refuse to pay prices shops are inflating all the time. A shop (and local
garage to me) will decide how much profit they want from a particular item.
If they have 20 they might want £5 on each. If they don't sell they will
INCREASE the price to make up the difference. This is silly! A local
Tesco garage has a variable pricing system. When the tanks are full the
fuel is cheaper, when it runs down the price changes to make it more
expensive. Very strange that one!



Coupled with a trip to the pub:
Wanting a pint and finding yourself behind someone ordering 6 meals with
combinations which are not set up on the till.
Getting behind someone and the debit card machine is playing up.
Standing in the "invisible" spot waiting to order.
Not wanting to interrupt the serving-kids who are chatting amongst
themselves and avoiding giving you eye-contact.
Unpolished brassware - shabby toilets - sticky tables.


I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.

In message , John
wrote

I am usually waiting behind someone who is ordering a meal and I only want a
simple pint! The transactions (logging on to the till, dealing with options,
etc) take too long

That's because the bar staff employed by the chain pubs are often don't
have the skill levels to write down the order or to add up the cost

--
Alan
news2006 {at} amac {dot} f2s {dot} com

John wrote:

I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.


Join the club...;-)

Frank wrote:

I also hate Tesco, they have huge signs which lie about being open 24hours.
They are on 4 or 5 days a week at a push, so why stack shelves and leave
huge trolleys and loose packaging in the way at 6pm at night. The checkout
people are just as bad, turning around having conversations amongst
themselves. I was told I was only allowed 4 carrier bags so piled a trolley
full of shopping in and they broke. So I stood there slowly taking ech item
out and waited until a manager come over to say I could have more. The
ignorant woman tried to continue to serve people so it took me longer.
They just don't get it. Price fixing and wild claims of sales and the
dreaded -
"HALF PRICE" is just to attract silly women and pensioners. They fight
to grab and buy items then wonder why as they didn't want them. They
just saw "half price" and went in to some frenzy.


My favourite Tesco-ism of the moment is their claim to have custard
cheaper than Morrisons. (78p instead of 79!) And completely ignoring the
BOGOF which actually makes Morrisons only a smidgen over half the price.
But they all do that...

--
Rod

Hypothyroidism is a seriously debilitating condition with an insidious
onset.
Although common it frequently goes undiagnosed.
www.thyromind.info www.thyroiduk.org www.altsupportthyroid.org

In message , The Natural
Philosopher wrote
John wrote:
I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.
Join the club...;-)


Which well known high street shops do you think will go next?

I predict M&S, WH Smiths and Boots who are so out of touch with what
other retailers are doing.

--
Alan
news2006 {at} amac {dot} f2s {dot} com

The Natural Philosopher wrote:
John wrote:

I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.

Join the club...;-)

A bunch of us at work went down to the new TGI Friday's in Belfast. Yes,
I know it's a chain, but I've been in the ones in Glasgow and Birmingham
and they've been just fine, so I figured it would be something similar.
Not brilliant, but at least good enough and predictable.

Turned out to be wrong. The menu was not what we expected, and when we
raised this with the manager he shrugged and said "well, what do you
want me to do about it?". You would have thought it was in his gift to
offer some free drinks or a 5% discount to stop us getting ****ed off -
but no.

The comments earlier about not knowing how to run a business are very
true. A lot people working in retail do not seem to understand that
their jobs flow directly from the paying punters coming through the
door, and helping the punters and encouraging them to buy their stuff
there translates into more revenue and safer jobs. We don't have John
Lewis over here yet, but it looks like they are the only major UK chain
which seems to understand this .. ?

Alan wrote:
In message , The Natural
Philosopher wrote
John wrote:
I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.
Join the club...;-)


Which well known high street shops do you think will go next?


Next.

Xenu The Enturbulator wrote:

A lot people working in retail do not seem to understand that
their jobs flow directly from the paying punters coming through the
door, and helping the punters and encouraging them to buy their stuff
there translates into more revenue and safer jobs.


What do you expect, when they are paid the minimum wage or just a
little above, and are bullied and variously shat on by incompetent
middle management who are obsessed with meeting often arbitrary and
unrealistic targets imposed by very highly paid senior management and
are constantly in fear of losing their jobs?

The combination of low pay, incompetent managers and ridiculous
top-down targets is enough to demotivate anyone.

You mentioned John Lewis - I snipped that bit. The reason John Lewis
staff are more motivated to help customers is that every one of them
has a share in the business. John Lewis is a Partnership and all the
"staff" are Partners. They stand to gain if the company does well.

On Wed, 31 Dec 2008 10:25:35 -0000, "John"
wrote:

Having ventured into the shops just before Xmas (to avoid the Dog House!), I
came away feeling they deserve their plight.
I was met with:

Assistants (M&S) talking loudly amongst themselves (complaining about their
manager) when they could have been helping me to spend more money.

Assistant in M&S unable to deal with an item as it didn't have a bar-code.
She went off to find an alternative - but failed, so I had to go.

Unable to find an assistant other than "concession staff" in Debenhams so I
came away empty handed. I was hoping to find something that my wife had seen
there earlier.

Dreary, depressing Bing Crosby songs being played.

Expensive parking


Coupled with a trip to the pub:
Wanting a pint and finding yourself behind someone ordering 6 meals with
combinations which are not set up on the till.
Getting behind someone and the debit card machine is playing up.
Standing in the "invisible" spot waiting to order.
Not wanting to interrupt the serving-kids who are chatting amongst
themselves and avoiding giving you eye-contact.
Unpolished brassware - shabby toilets - sticky tables.


I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.


Stop it. You're twisting my melon.

Derek

In message , Frank
wrote


I also hate Tesco,

At least they know what the customer wants - Easter Eggs

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/odd/a139...-sale-at-tesco.
html

--
Alan
news2006 {at} amac {dot} f2s {dot} com

"Frank" wrote in message
...

That spoils a surprise as you will have to take your wife back to the
shop.

I did not know you could do that. I paid for a divorce when mine was faulty.

Adam

The Natural Philosopher coughed up some electrons that declared:

John wrote:

I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.


Join the club...;-)


I'd like to support local traders who've been helpful and free with advice,
like Topps Tiles and Fixings Direct, and of course TLC[1]. But in general
it seems that the Internet offers more choice, better prices and faster
service for specials (vs the shop trying to get it).

But the rest of the surley unhelpful traders are going to get what they
deserve.

[1] I try to give them first refusal to quote, and I have a rule, that if
they can get to within 10-15% of Internet price, I'll let them have the
sale, because after all, they are able to offer good advice which most
internet stores can't.

Cheers

Tim

Alan coughed up some electrons that declared:

I predict M&S,

OK for a few cloths and nice food, but I'm appalled by their kids' clothing.
That's the one thing I would go there, but the T.Wells branch, which is one
of the bigger stores has a pathetic selection.

WH Smiths

Their alright for books (though Amazon is kicking their arse these days) and
it's the only place worth going for special interest magazines
(electronics, you PERVERTS!)

and Boots who are so out of touch with what
other retailers are doing.


I don't find them too bad - they've mostly stuck to their core products of
cosmetics, medicines and baby thingies.

Cheers

Tim

Bruce coughed up some electrons that declared:

Alan wrote:
In message , The Natural
Philosopher wrote
John wrote:
I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.
Join the club...;-)


Which well known high street shops do you think will go next?


Next.

Oh don't...

The women's clothes shop that will do well will be the one that has a
bloke's lounge next to every set of changing rooms - leather sofas, TV,
coffee machine, free crisps and today's papers.

Don't know why such an obvious idea hasn't been done...

Hehe

Tim

On Wed, 31 Dec 2008 16:24:30 +0000, Tim S wrote:

The women's clothes shop that will do well will be the one that has a
bloke's lounge next to every set of changing rooms - leather sofas, TV,
coffee machine, free crisps and today's papers.


You forgot the trains set. ;-)

Don't know why such an obvious idea hasn't been done...

It has been done BTW.

Derek

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember "Frank"
saying something like:

There is no recession,

Phew, that's a relief. Had me going for a month or two, there.

it's just people have had enough of being ripped off
so refuse to pay prices shops are inflating all the time.

That's true enough - when money's tight, people think hard about what to
really spend it on and the overpriced shark gets left out.

On Wed, 31 Dec 2008 15:36:16 +0000, Bruce wrote:

You mentioned John Lewis - I snipped that bit. The reason John Lewis
staff are more motivated to help customers is that every one of them
has a share in the business. John Lewis is a Partnership and all the
"staff" are Partners. They stand to gain if the company does well.

Good and all that.

Just out of interest ...

What's there share ?

How much do they get ?

Derek

Bruce coughed up some electrons that declared:


You mentioned John Lewis - I snipped that bit. The reason John Lewis
staff are more motivated to help customers is that every one of them
has a share in the business. John Lewis is a Partnership and all the
"staff" are Partners. They stand to gain if the company does well.

Next door neighbour is a store manager for Waitrose (part of John Lewis as
you know) and she says the same thing.

You've only got to go to Paddock Wood Waitrose or Tonbridge to see that even
the young shelf stackers and in fact all the other staff are amongst the
most articulate and helpful of any of the supermarkets - nothing seems too
much trouble - and they actually know where random product X is.

And I see the same faces for quite long periods (like years) which I don't
see in Tescos, except for a couple of career-fast-track staff and a couple
of the older ladies. To most people, it's like McDonalds - something you do
until you can find something else.

Cheers

Tim

Tim S wrote:

I'd like to support local traders who've been helpful and free with advice,
like Topps Tiles


Don't you think it's stretching things a bit to describe Topps Tiles
as a "local trader"?

Tim S wrote:
Bruce coughed up some electrons that declared:
Alan wrote:
In message , The Natural
Philosopher wrote
John wrote:
I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.
Join the club...;-)


Which well known high street shops do you think will go next?


Next.

Oh don't...


I was being completely serious.

Derek Geldard coughed up some electrons that declared:

On Wed, 31 Dec 2008 16:24:30 +0000, Tim S wrote:

The women's clothes shop that will do well will be the one that has a
bloke's lounge next to every set of changing rooms - leather sofas, TV,
coffee machine, free crisps and today's papers.


You forgot the trains set. ;-)

Don't know why such an obvious idea hasn't been done...

It has been done BTW.

Where? I'll take the missus! Anything's better than sitting on a footstool
or the floor waiting 10 minutes times x-million sessions to spend 20
seconds to pass a "yea or nay" to a random set of clothes.

Cheers

Tim

On Wed, 31 Dec 2008 15:16:14 +0000, Alan wrote:

Which well known high street shops do you think will go next?

I predict M&S,

A year or so back yes but I think they have manged to get more or less
back on track recently.

WH Smiths and Boots who are so out of touch with what other retailers
are doing.

It's not what other retailers are doing but how well individual
stores/chains are at shifting product with a workable margin. The stores
that have gone so far have mostly been heavy discounters, or up to the
hilt in debt with suppliers. No room to adsorb variations in trade levels.
My feeling is that the more boutique type clothing places be next.

--
Cheers
Dave.

Bruce coughed up some electrons that declared:

Tim S wrote:

I'd like to support local traders who've been helpful and free with
advice, like Topps Tiles


Don't you think it's stretching things a bit to describe Topps Tiles
as a "local trader"?

Fair point - but they employ local people. Let's say "bricks 'n' mortar"
stores then.

Derek Geldard wrote:

On Wed, 31 Dec 2008 15:36:16 +0000, Bruce wrote:

You mentioned John Lewis - I snipped that bit. The reason John Lewis
staff are more motivated to help customers is that every one of them
has a share in the business. John Lewis is a Partnership and all the
"staff" are Partners. They stand to gain if the company does well.

Good and all that.

Just out of interest ...

What's there share ?

How much do they get ?


They get a salary plus an annual bonus. The bonus is a proportion of
the company's annual profit, divided out using complicated formulae
that takes into account both seniority and length of service.

Obviously, junior staff who were only there are short time get least.

I think the 2007 annual bonus, paid in March 2008, averaged something
like 20% of annual salary, which is a pretty good incentive. The 2008
bonus will be much lower because sales struggled to match the record
2007 figures and in quite a few months they fell well short.

I would imagine that John Lewis is a good company to work for. The
staff always seem genuinely pleasant and know what they are selling.

Quite the opposite of Tesco.

"John" wrote in message
...
Having ventured into the shops just before Xmas (to avoid the Dog House!),
I came away feeling they deserve their plight.

**** innit?
I came away from a bout of Christmas shopping promising certain shops would
get none of my future business.

Tim S wrote:

Bruce coughed up some electrons that declared:

Tim S wrote:

I'd like to support local traders who've been helpful and free with
advice, like Topps Tiles


Don't you think it's stretching things a bit to describe Topps Tiles
as a "local trader"?

Fair point - but they employ local people.


So do Tesco. shudder

Let's say "bricks 'n' mortar" stores then.

OK.

Alan wrote:
In message , The Natural
Philosopher wrote
John wrote:
I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.
Join the club...;-)


Which well known high street shops do you think will go next?

I predict M&S, WH Smiths and Boots who are so out of touch with what
other retailers are doing.

Smiths certainly.

M&S and Boots I still use..

Tim S wrote:
The Natural Philosopher coughed up some electrons that declared:

John wrote:
I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.


Join the club...;-)


I'd like to support local traders who've been helpful and free with advice,
like Topps Tiles and Fixings Direct, and of course TLC[1]. But in general
it seems that the Internet offers more choice, better prices and faster
service for specials (vs the shop trying to get it).

But the rest of the surley unhelpful traders are going to get what they
deserve.


That is the whole point. Low price zero stock and crap staff cant
compete with direct selling: pleasant surrondings, helpful staff can.


[1] I try to give them first refusal to quote, and I have a rule, that if
they can get to within 10-15% of Internet price, I'll let them have the
sale, because after all, they are able to offer good advice which most
internet stores can't.


If they can. I've had brilliant info off the guys selling direct over
the net.Hint: if there aint no phone number, don't buy!


Cheers

Tim

"Bruce" wrote in message
...
Tim S wrote:
Bruce coughed up some electrons that declared:
Alan wrote:
In message , The Natural
Philosopher wrote
John wrote:
I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.
Join the club...;-)


Which well known high street shops do you think will go next?


Next.

Oh don't...


I was being completely serious.


Next!!! - Ah the shop that sells stuff that costs a few quid to make is
marked at £100 and then people queue and fight over it when it is "reduced"
to £60.

If Primark can sell items at a certain price - then how much more should a
better quality item really cost? (given that they are probably made in the
same far eastern country on the same machines)? Using M&S as an example the
answer seems to be about 10 times more. The shipping and distribution
element would be the same.

John wrote:
SNIP

Expensive parking


Medway Council seem set upon driving business away from the town centre, car
parking charges are horrific. Bearing in mind Chatham town centre is
between Bluewater & Hempstead Valley shopping centers - both of whom offer
free parking.

Parking charges are enforced 6 days a week until 10pm, so local shops &
restaurants get stuffed as well. We even have a smart car
http://www.medwaymessenger.co.uk/kol...ticle_id=53053
with a bloody camera on it!


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

OG wrote:
"Alan" wrote in message
...
In message , John
wrote

Having ventured into the shops just before Xmas (to avoid the Dog
House!), I
came away feeling they deserve their plight.


Coupled with a trip to the pub:
Wanting a pint and finding yourself behind someone ordering 6 meals
with combinations which are not set up on the till.
Getting behind someone and the debit card machine is playing up.
Standing in the "invisible" spot waiting to order.
Not wanting to interrupt the serving-kids who are chatting amongst
themselves and avoiding giving you eye-contact.
Unpolished brassware - shabby toilets - sticky tables.

That'll teach you to go into a JD Wetherspoon pub, or maybe not as
the 'staff'' are usually too busy polishing that brassware to serve
anyone. Why do these pub chains still employ McDonald's rejects
as managers and staff?


We've never had less than really good service from Wetherspoon's
staff, but we generally only go there for breakfast, so it's less
busy, and always clean and tidy.

The breakfast is OK, its the old gits sitting round drinking pints at 10 in
the morning that puts we off. How can you drink beer at that time of day?


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

Alan wrote:
In message , The Natural
Philosopher wrote
John wrote:
I think I will shop on the internet and drink at home.
Join the club...;-)


Which well known high street shops do you think will go next?

I predict M&S, WH Smiths and Boots who are so out of touch with what
other retailers are doing.

Yup. M&S clothing is ridiculously expensive and places like Matalan have
equal quality at much lower prices, longer opening hours & free parking.

Smiths don't sell any stationery I can't get cheaper (and with wider choice)
than at Staples (with free parking). Books are now limited to the top ten
celebrity best seller ****e, so I either go to Waterstones for a good browse
or Amazon online.

Boots don't offer me anything I can't buy in Tesco or Morrisons while doing
other shopping. If pushed to visit a chemists type shop I'd go to
Superdrug.

I reckon the traditional town centre is going to end up a wasteland what
with out of town shopping & the interweb. Town centres and high street
retailers had a place in peoples lives 20 years ago, but things change.


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

On Wed, 31 Dec 2008 16:46:06 +0000, Bruce wrote:


I think the 2007 annual bonus, paid in March 2008, averaged something
like 20% of annual salary, which is a pretty good incentive.

That is good, as long as the basic salary is competitive.

The 2008
bonus will be much lower because sales struggled to match the record
2007 figures and in quite a few months they fell well short.

And that's fair enough. Money cannot be "created from nowhere"


I would imagine that John Lewis is a good company to work for. The
staff always seem genuinely pleasant and know what they are selling.

Quite the opposite of Tesco.

Dunno, here (Leeds) our John Lewis is a couple of years away. Tesco we
have, and I always assumed they just paid no more than they have to.

Derek

"John" wrote:

Next!!! - Ah the shop that sells stuff that costs a few quid to make is
marked at £100 and then people queue and fight over it when it is "reduced"
to £60.


Exactly.


If Primark can sell items at a certain price - then how much more should a
better quality item really cost? (given that they are probably made in the
same far eastern country on the same machines)? Using M&S as an example the
answer seems to be about 10 times more. The shipping and distribution
element would be the same.


Cheap Far Eastern manufacture has allowed some greedy retailers to
whack up their margins to levels never seen before. Whereas typical
mark-ups were in the 50% to 100% range, they became multiples of 100%.

When retailers found they could buy items at a tenth of the price they
were paying for UK-made goods, they didn't drop their retail prices by
more than a few per cent. As a result, their margins went through the
roof. M&S is a very good example.

The result is that shopping centres have become warehouses of cheap
Far Eastern tat often sold at unbelievably high prices. With cheap,
minimum wage staff, their major costs are rents, refits and the
marketing budget. The whole edifice has been hugely profitable for a
few years, but is on the point of crumbling into nothing because it is
totally dependent on moving stock that isn't selling except at deep
discounts - and that's the margin gone.

The guessing game of who will survive and who will fall by the wayside
is fascinating, but huge numbers of retail staff will lose their jobs
this year through no fault of their own.