Supermarkets in France

[adrian29uk]

Why is it local shops in France manage to co-exist with large supermarkets such as Carrefour and Auchan. Everytime I go to France I still the same small retailers happily doing business.

In this country we have small retailers going to the wall everyday becuase of arseholes like Tesco and Sainsburys, Asda. It now seems supermarkets are going to get even more power.

I have nothing against good value, but I really do think the large supermarkets are responsible for crippling small retailers and producers. I think if the general public found out what they really get up to they would be quite shocked.

 

[Gully]

Because the French are stuffy about their food and don't necessarily believe that cheap and cheerful is best...that is why the smaller suppliers who provide the best quality will always survive.

 

[aftershavedave]

Because the French are stuffy about their food and don't necessarily believe that cheap and cheerful is best...that is why the smaller suppliers who provide the best quality will always survive.

is the right answer. hopefull we're moving in the same direction

 

[London Calling]

and there is a different planning system there,

Hypermarkets are permitted, ie a Carrefour and Independent shops under one roof but must be out of town, there is also a restrction on the number, so some towns may decide its only one. And the carrefours etc must offer the best price for that shop.

The French system can state that a road will have a butcher, a cafe, a boulangerie etc

We cannot restrict by type of shop.

Plus the Carefours do provide excellent food as well and tend to support local farmers and wineries and as such are tolerated.

 

[Beach Hut]

French supermarkets are streets ahead of ours with the quality of food on offer

 

[Gully]

I would tend to agree with that, I used to stop off at Carrefour at Calais whenever I came back to the UK from the Netherlands...their range of cheeses was superb and they did a tarte au citron to die for!

 

[Starry]

I think if the general public found out what they really get up to they would be quite shocked.

do you? i think the majority dont care enough to be shocked. the convenience of it all under one roof at basement prices is deep veined now.

tesco are trying to build a new building, bigger than the new terminal five at heathrow on a disused airfield just down the road from stonehenge. the people of nw hampshire have complained, complained, petitioned, stampeded because they don't want this monstrosity on their doorstep, but question them why and none of them really have a proper answer. these same people shop in tesco and buy their 30p bread and 10p beans, process their photos while they shop and collect a prescription at the end, grab little johnny's new school uniform while mr dad picks up a new tv before stopping off for a drink at the cafe.

the outraged people of nw hampshire dont want this building, but so long as people want to do all that in an hour while they grocery shop it has to happen somewhere. unfortunately.

like was said above. the frenchput quality over price 99.9per cent of the time, they are leagues ahead of us. we could learn a thing or two from them.

 

[Gully]

I know that we have had threads about allotments and the benefit of growing your own veggies, but after managing to grow a few of my own this year I will never buy another bag of pre-prepared lettuce or mini tomatoes from the supermarket...what they sell is largely tasteless rubbish.

 

[pasty]

We cannot restrict by type of shop.

I thought we already did. Every street must have a Starbucks, McDonalds, Costa Coffee, Burger King, Cafe Nero, Pret A Manger etc etc

 

[London Calling]

I thought we already did. Every street must have a Starbucks, McDonalds, Costa Coffee, Burger King, Cafe Nero, Pret A Manger etc etc

cheeky....................

unless you live in East London, then its Pound Stretcher, Pund Shop, All for a Pound, Pound or Less and Mc Donalds.

 

[BensGrandad]

do you? i
tesco are trying to build a new building, bigger than the new terminal five at heathrow on a disused airfield just down the road from stonehenge. the people of nw hampshire have complained, complained, petitioned, stampeded because they don't want this monstrosity on their doorstep, .

But it will happen as Tesco always win.

 

[Alex Alex Dawson oo! oo!]

I would tend to agree with that, I used to stop off at Carrefour at Calais whenever I came back to the UK from the Netherlands...their range of cheeses was superb and they did a tarte au citron to die for!

Used to do similar when I worked in Belgium in the 1990's.

Off to Marseille in the morning until Monday night - any orders anyone?

 

[Beach Hut]

Used to do similar when I worked in Belgium in the 1990's.

Off to Marseille in the morning until Monday night - any orders anyone?

Camembert x 3, 12 cases of cote de rhone, 3 lots of dish washer tablets and 3 x washing machine stuff for Mrs Hut please.

Not forgetting 10 crates of lager......................

 

[Alex Alex Dawson oo! oo!]

Camembert x 3, 12 cases of cote de rhone, 3 lots of dish washer tablets and 3 x washing machine stuff for Mrs Hut please.

Not forgetting 10 crates of lager......................

Can't see a problem, wife said we can use her 23kg allowance as she can't possibly want any more shoes................surely?

Hold on a minute it's a work trip - why's she coming along?

 

[clapham_gull]

Clapham High Street was featured on Sky News last night, for the fact (and I've posted it on here many times) that we have a Sainsburys, next door to a Tescos, next door to another Sainsburys.

I even received a PM on here from someone who worked for Sainsburys who admitted that they opened the smaller one to kill off the trade of the local shops around one of the tube stations.

I admit to regularly shopping in Sainsburys, but I regularly shop in the local shops too.

Anyway - got a bit pissed off by the commissions "conclusion" that supermarkets have "helped" local businesses like bakeries thrive.

How the f*ck did they come to that conclusion ?

I use the example of bakeries because yes, the one thing I've noticed around here in particular is that bakeries are springing up everywhere.

.. but Borough Market is also absolutely jam packed at weekends.

I think that's consumers realising that actually the food available in Supermarkets (although convenient) ain't all that all the time, when you get the chance to buy from someone whose had the balls to stand up to the Tescopolies of this world.

 

[BensGrandad]

I must admit that my wife and I are buying our bread in a bakery now as opposed toa supermarket and we tend to buy meat in a traditional butchers whereever possible but they are getting fewer and fewer. To be totally correct the above only applies when it is just us 2 at home, if we have the grandchildren at home for the weekend, BHA homes games, we use the supermarket due to costs like Iceland 2 loaves for £1.30 as opposed to bakers 1 loaf for £1.25

 

[Mr deez]

i am gay

 

[pasty]

I must admit that my wife and I are buying our bread in a bakery now as opposed toa supermarket and we tend to buy meat in a traditional butchers whereever possible but they are getting fewer and fewer. To be totally correct the above only applies when it is just us 2 at home, if we have the grandchildren at home for the weekend, BHA homes games, we use the supermarket due to costs like Iceland 2 loaves for £1.30 as opposed to bakers 1 loaf for £1.25

Now Mrs P no longer works on saturdays we buy all of our fruit and veg at the open market, meat at the butchers, fish from Sids bowdown and only bother with supermarkets for tins and stuff. The food tastes better for a start and we both actually quite enjoy doing it.

 

[Yorkie]

I love going to the local Super U whilst on holiday in France as well as the local market.

We also call in at the Carrefours in Calais but have already stocked up on wine at our holiday destination as it is cheaper there.

 

[Nemesis]

we could learn a thing or two from them.

But they're French and foreign! What could they possibly teach the UK? It's not British the way they do things.....