Tesco next down the pan?

[exbluejob]

We supply Tesco, and the reduction is skews is a strategic decision due to the fact when they went with the "Extra" very large store concept it was before the huge change in buying patterns via Amazon et al.

he Extra stores are struggling and are carrying skews like TV,s etc that just don't make money.

The Express and Mid Size stores are actually quite profitable due to carry far less range. Aldi and Lidl are very much a threat to all the large traditional multiples. I would expect to see a number of large store closures and or a reduction in skews available.

Interestingly the small precinct in our village had a moderately sized coop but it wasn't doing enough business for its size and closed earlier this year. Its been split into 4 units, the largest one is being converted into a Tesco Express (hoping to open just before xmas they say). Although there is a Tesco Extra about a mile away the express will be handy for the older generation who like to walk but a mile there and back with shopping would be too much. Applied for an alcohol licence as well, 0600 - 2359 7 days

 

[Moderator]

We supply Tesco, and the reduction is skews is a strategic decision due to the fact when they went with the "Extra" very large store concept it was before the huge change in buying patterns via Amazon et al.

he Extra stores are struggling and are carrying skews like TV,s etc that just don't make money.

The Express and Mid Size stores are actually quite profitable due to carry far less range. Aldi and Lidl are very much a threat to all the large traditional multiples. I would expect to see a number of large store closures and or a reduction in skews available.

Perhaps the reason the newly built and opened Morrison near my daughter’s is a noticeably smallish store on a massive plot of land.

They built it and five much smaller retail units (of which they have occupied two for their clothing and home products) around a disproportionately massive car park.

Strangely, no fuel station even though the massive site with two vehicular entrances and exits could accommodate several. The little town has no filling station other than a ‘Fred’s Garage’ - one petrol pump, one diesel pump, an MoT bay and motorway fuel prices.

 

[bobthebuilder]

Seems to me that Covid has provided a lifeline for food retailers and given them a breathing space to sort their ecom business out. Not the same for the rag trade; Arcadia is not looking good.

 

[lokiuk]

Seems to me that Covid has provided a lifeline for food retailers and given them a breathing space to sort their ecom business out. Not the same for the rag trade; Arcadia is not looking good.

Squeaky bum time for those hoping to rely on an Arcadia pension, although if they haven't been having sleepless nights over it years ago they're a bit slow off the mark

 

[rockpile]

Lady Isobel Barnett Walt?

Show in your age - said in a low voice. I remember her with Gilbert Harding on 'What's My Line'.

 

[rockpile]

Although I've had home deliveries from Tesco for some time (foregoing the check out ladies stimulating conversation) on Wednesday I received packaged vegetables for the first time. One packet had a use by date of the next day and the other two had three days left. No more veg from Tesco.

Contrast that with Waitrose which gave me a pizza (over £5) and cheese coleslaw because they were close to their use by date.

Downhill go Tesco.

 

[Provost]

Squeaky bum time for those hoping to rely on an Arcadia pension, although if they haven't been having sleepless nights over it years ago they're a bit slow off the mark

Still, so long as Sir Philip and his missus don't have to sell the yacht, eh?

 

[Moderator]

Seems to me that Covid has provided a lifeline for food retailers and given them a breathing space to sort their ecom business out. Not the same for the rag trade; Arcadia is not looking good.

Arcadia on the BBC One o’clock News right now. On the brink.

Topshop owner Arcadia on brink of collapse

 

[wheelchairwarrier]

Tesco home delivery arrived this afternoon.
All 45 items there, thing is,
It should have been delivered YESTERDAY evening ,
the reason customer services gave me when they rang back,
"it was dark and the driver couldn't find your address" ,
( didnt bother ringing for directions or looking
at the delivery instructions with map ref, what3words and landmarks )
all fresh stuff given back to driver as now out of date.
Roll on next week

 

[History_Man]

Although I've had home deliveries from Tesco for some time (foregoing the check out ladies stimulating conversation) on Wednesday I received packaged vegetables for the first time. One packet had a use by date of the next day and the other two had three days left. No more veg from Tesco.

Contrast that with Waitrose which gave me a pizza (over £5) and cheese coleslaw because they were close to their use by date.

Downhill go Tesco.

Tesco have circled the drain once before thanks to some seriously dodgy accounting; I think that they will disappear down the plughole this time.

 

[Grownup_Rafbrat]

Tesco home delivery arrived this afternoon.
All 45 items there, thing is,
It should have been delivered YESTERDAY evening ,
the reason customer services gave me when they rang back,
"it was dark and the driver couldn't find your address" ,
( didnt bother ringing for directions or looking
at the delivery instructions with map ref, what3words and landmarks )
all fresh stuff given back to driver as now out of date.
Roll on next week

They never share that information. When we lived in the asylum Sainsbugs could never find the address despite my writing detailed notes for drivers. They did ring us for directions though.

 

[Moderator]

Arcadia on the BBC One o’clock News right now. On the brink.

Topshop owner Arcadia on brink of collapse

Mike Ashley reportedly interested in buying the entire portfolio of Arcadia brands.

He could probably buy the whole entity from the administrators, strip the brand names out and simply close the majority of the stores.

The brands he wants will then consolidated into HoF store and cherry picked locations as multi brand stores. The brands he doesn’t want will be pigeon holed to prevent any other entity acquiring them.

Whatever the outcome it is going to be a vicious blow to the high street and thousands of jobs.

 

[lokiuk]

Mike Ashley reportedly interested in buying the entire portfolio of Arcadia brands.

He could probably buy the whole entity from the administrators, strip the brand names out and simply close the majority of the stores.

The brands he wants will then consolidated into HoF store and cherry picked locations as multi brand stores. The brands he doesn’t want will be pigeon holed to prevent any other entity acquiring them.

Whatever the outcome it is going to be a vicious blow to the high street and thousands of jobs.

I wonder if it will be sold for £1 if the buyer takes on all the pension liabilities

No that would never happen would it

 

[rampant]

Still, so long as Sir Philip and his missus don't have to sell the yacht, eh?

Or miss their holiday

 

[The Assassin]

Or miss their holiday

View attachment 524307

Poor guy, can ONLY afford a £30K/night getaway

 

[bobthebuilder]

Mike Ashley reportedly interested in buying the entire portfolio of Arcadia brands.

He could probably buy the whole entity from the administrators, strip the brand names out and simply close the majority of the stores.

The brands he wants will then consolidated into HoF store and cherry picked locations as multi brand stores. The brands he doesn’t want will be pigeon holed to prevent any other entity acquiring them.

Whatever the outcome it is going to be a vicious blow to the high street and thousands of jobs.

TBH I think Covid has accelerated the inevitable. It won’t be long before Ashley heads the same way. The way of the future is pure Direct to Customer (D2C).

A friend of ours was until recently the marketing director of long-established Aussie swimwear retailer, which went bust a few months ago. I saw her present at a digital marketing conference, where she described the challenges of running a hybrid business. In their case, they had their own shops (over 200) in high value locations, their clothes were also stocked in the two major department store chains and they had their own e-commerce shop.

If they discounted a product on their website, then they’d get a call from David Jones (department store) demanding the same discount of the cost price. Running a hybrid model meant that the needed a much larger and more complex pick and pack operation, one capable of processing online shopping returns, but also servicing bulk deliveries.

There was significant inertia in setting up promotions in their shops, which cost them the advantages in agility that e-commerce offers. Get a product trending online or in store and you want to exploit the trend, but if you’ve got to wait until your shops can do so, the trend has gone. Zara have invested heavily in this, to the point that they can get a product trending, scale up manufacture and pump it to where it is selling best. Old style businesses like Arcadia are way behind the technical drag curve here and are suffering as a result.

Just a couple of examples of a very challenging business model. Within ten years, it will all be online.

 

[Grownup_Rafbrat]

Mike Ashley reportedly interested in buying the entire portfolio of Arcadia brands.

He could probably buy the whole entity from the administrators, strip the brand names out and simply close the majority of the stores.

The brands he wants will then consolidated into HoF store and cherry picked locations as multi brand stores. The brands he doesn’t want will be pigeon holed to prevent any other entity acquiring them.

Whatever the outcome it is going to be a vicious blow to the high street and thousands of jobs.

Fierce, but better than prolonging the inevitable as the stores become even more drab and crowded with junk no.one wants to buy, the staff become more demoralised and less helpful, and the High Steet more miserable every day.

At least he can blame covid for killing trade, get Government money to pay the staff off, and help them to find work in the new delivery economy.

 

[bobthebuilder]

Fierce, but better than prolonging the inevitable as the stores become even more drab and crowded with junk no.one wants to buy, the staff become more demoralised and less helpful, and the High Steet more miserable every day.

At least he can blame covid for killing trade, get Government money to pay the staff off, and help them to find work in the new delivery economy.

The challenge in the new delivery economy lies in the storefront and how it works. Ten years ago, if you wandered into your nearest city centre to buy some clothes, you had a choice of maybe 20 generic stores. Most of the small independent retailers had already been destroyed by the big label brand distributors like Primark. Now online you can find clothes from any number of micro-businesses.

Delivery logistics is now pretty much commoditised and entirely scaleable. Amazon, Ocado et al have sorted that. A micro-business has the same routes to market online as Topshop.

I think we’re seeing a move away from big name retailers, back to smaller, bespoke shops.

 

[pc flaps]

Mike Ashley reportedly interested in buying the entire portfolio of Arcadia brands.

He could probably buy the whole entity from the administrators, strip the brand names out and simply close the majority of the stores.

The brands he wants will then consolidated into HoF store and cherry picked locations as multi brand stores. The brands he doesn’t want will be pigeon holed to prevent any other entity acquiring them.

Whatever the outcome it is going to be a vicious blow to the high street and thousands of jobs.

Notice how he's rebranded the overall company as "Fraser" rather than Sports Direct. Bid for respectability?

 

[pc flaps]

Xara have invested heavily in this, to the point that they can get a product trending, scale up manufacture and pump it to where it is selling best. Old style businesses like Arcadia are way behind the technical drag curve here and are suffering as a result.

Zara have the advantage as they make as well as sell. A few UK stores might well look at how they're doing the "trend, scale up and target sell" thing you mentioned there and decide the best way to copy it is to become manufacturers themselves.

I predict a few clothing manufacturers will be bought by big stores in the next year as the stores decide the future is vertical.