Supermarkets discussion

[GusB]

I'm getting more and more fed up with my local Sainsbury having one price displayed on the shelf and the bar code showing a different one. Have complained to store managers a couple of times but it still occurs on a regular basis

Asda used to give you the product if that happened, no idea if they do not.

A report to trading standards should stop this.

It was always drummed into us that an offence was being committed if an item scanned at a higher price than that advertised on the shelf edge ticket (SET) and that Trading Standards would take a dim view. I can't remember how much the store could potentially fined if they were prosecuted, but it I recall that it was a fairly eye-watering amount 30 years ago.

How the retailer deals with an incorrectly priced item seems to vary. There's no obligation to sell the item at the lower price and it can be withdrawn from sale completely. From experience, staff at the customer service desk would be expected to use their discretion. Refunding the difference between the price charged and the price advertised, along with an apology, is often enough to satisfy most customers; however, if they're of the "I know my rights" type, it's probably better to let them have it free of charge. It will depend on a combination of company policy, the disposition of the customer you're dealing with and how big the difference between the prices actually is. If the shelf ticket says £5 and the product is an expensive bottle of single malt whisky that actually costs £40 (to use an extreme example) you'll want to immediately remove that product from sale until the pricing issue is resolved; you may end up with one or two very lucky customers in the meantime.

Going back to my Safeway days, in most cases where I've issued refunds for what seemed to be incorrectly priced items, the shelf edge ticket has matched the actual price charged. Sometimes a point-of-sale promotional sign either hadn't been removed when a promotion ended, or it was incorrectly replaced on the shelf (sometimes the signs get knocked off the shelf and kicked under the shelving, only to reappear a few days later). In those cases the promotion end date was clearly marked on the signage; while we were legally covered, it was always better honour the expired offer.

Our managers were very strict about getting prices right. Price changes happened overnight between Sunday and Monday and the store admin team did a weekly night shift (I was often asked to assist them - good money on a bank holiday weekend), with most promotions changing every 4 weeks. Any SETs that had been replaced were left in a vertical position until someone had been round to do a price check. If the gadget confirmed the price on the ticket, it was turned round to its normal position; if the two figures differed, the SET would be left and the gadget would generate a report that the admin manager would pick up. This all happened before the shop opened at 8am on Monday.

I wonder if this attention to detail has been lost in the rush to de-staff supermarkets. Perhaps the prospect of legal action from Trading Standards isn't enough of a financial threat compared to the amount that the supermarkets are saving.

 

[DM352]

A family member used to some years ago work with Trading Standards and heard in some cases, the fine at the time was less than the overpricing benefit the retailer got.

I find it hit and miss if the store has a "check the price" at a convenient location as it is a pain dealing with a price discrepancy at the checkout with a line behind you.

 

[dgl]

A lot of supermarkets had price checkers around the store, used to be a fun thing to play with when I was younger. They were certainly still in vogue when the Portland Tesco was built though it was hit and miss if they actually worked. With the advent of scan as you go and similar systems I bet they saw them as unnecessary and removed them, I certainly haven't seen one for a good while, the last place I saw one would have been IKEA but they still have their info screens that I guess can give the same info.

 

[deltic]

How many large supermarkets now require you to scan your own shopping at certain times? I tend to do our weekly shop before 8am and the only option available at that time is now self scan which wasn't the case 6 months ago.

 

[YouLostAStar]

The supermarkets were giving the bags away until a few years ago, and only stopped doing so because the government told them they had to. It's a stretch to see the supermarkets crying massive tears over this tbh.

bags were only free before because everyone else was giving them out for free. No one wanted to be the first to charge for basic bags.
Does anyone remember the public meltdown that happened when stores first had to start charging 10p a bag.
More irony though is people said it was the start of stores charging more for bags and they were absolutely right

I doubt the supermarkets care much (until people leave because they can't shop) as the cost of the replacement trolleys is passed on to us anyway.

Head office may not care but whoever does the ordering in store will need to re-order them from a budget which covers lots of other things the store needs

 

[Kite159]

.

I'm getting more and more fed up with my local Sainsbury having one price displayed on the shelf and the bar code showing a different one. Have complained to store managers a couple of times but it still occurs on a regular basis

A few weeks back I popped into the local Asda to get a few odds and sods. I think out of the 8 products I purchased 2 scanned for less than the shelf edge label & 3 scanned for more plus one promotion had ended without the labels being removed (didn't get those in the end).

Just shows the only way to do supermarket shopping these days is to use 'scan as you go', that way you can pick up any wrong prices.

As for Sainsbury's it took them a good few months to replace a price label for a pack of 6x mini milky way style chocolate bars from £1 to £1,10 (before those jumped to £1,45). Even if you put the label in vertically so it stands out.

 

[jon81uk]

bags were only free before because everyone else was giving them out for free. No one wanted to be the first to charge for basic bags.

Technically Aldi and Lidl (and Kwik Save before them) were the first to charge for bags. Its only the non-discounters that needed the push.

 

[takno]

Technically Aldi and Lidl (and Kwik Save before them) were the first to charge for bags. Its only the non-discounters that needed the push.

They only started being free at all in the late 80s didn't they? Kwik Save just never introduced free bags, and certainly round my way Netto pre-dated Aldi and Lidl into the market.

 

[Hadders]

When I started my retail career in the 1980s carrier bags cost 5p. In the 1990s one of the big supermarlets started giving away free bags and that opened the floodgates to them being free everywhere.

 

[lookapigeon]

I don't ever recall prices for bags on the continent being so expensive compared to the UK. Yes, for the properly reusable ones (like tote bags, jute ones etc) fair enough.

For example I was in Spain last year in a Mercadona, a standard carrier bag was 10/15 cents and very strong, whereas in the UK when they did charge for single use bags, it was literally for the free ones they'd give away, maybe with the exception of Sainsbury's who did make their single use one into a reusable one. And now charge more for!

I wonder what the appetite is in the UK for supermarkets from the continent (e.g. Mercadona in Spain, Carrefour in France) setting up shop here? It would be nice to see a continental twist on shopping. Or is the market in the UK just too crowded?

 

[DannyMich2018]

I've noticed Tesco are sneakily putting their prices up... with a lot of everything going beyond what you can afford. A 65p packet of mozzarella cheese (cheapest brand not supermarket brand) is now 80p seeing an increase of 15p, amongst other basic things.

Even B and M Bargains have increased prices a lot with many prices now not far off supermarket prices for many food items.

How many large supermarkets now require you to scan your own shopping at certain times? I tend to do our weekly shop before 8am and the only option available at that time is now self scan which wasn't the case 6 months ago.

The supermarket I work in opens Mon-Fri at 06.00, we tend not to open first staffed tills till around 07.30-08.30 ish depending on demand but if a customer requests one opening before we'll open one for them and keep it open if need be.

 

[hexagon789]

I don't ever recall prices for bags on the continent being so expensive compared to the UK. Yes, for the properly reusable ones (like tote bags, jute ones etc) fair enough.

For example I was in Spain last year in a Mercadona, a standard carrier bag was 10/15 cents and very strong, whereas in the UK when they did charge for single use bags, it was literally for the free ones they'd give away, maybe with the exception of Sainsbury's who did make their single use one into a reusable one. And now charge more for!

I wonder what the appetite is in the UK for supermarkets from the continent (e.g. Mercadona in Spain, Carrefour in France) setting up shop here? It would be nice to see a continental twist on shopping. Or is the market in the UK just too crowded?

Carrefour used to have a number of hypermarché-style large stores in the UK from 1972 omwards; they sold them (all?) to ASDA in the 90s I believe. Some are still in existence as ASDAs.

 

[Ediswan]

In France I thought the pre packed sandwiches were long life and inferior to UK ones.

I tried one once at at the sort of Autoroute aire which has a shop but no restaurant. 'Inferior' is being generous. Never again.

 

[Cornish Pasty]

I've noticed Tesco are sneakily putting their prices up... with a lot of everything going beyond what you can afford. A 65p packet of mozzarella cheese (cheapest brand not supermarket brand) is now 80p seeing an increase of 15p, amongst other basic things.

You can expect the products to be a "Clubcard special price" very soon.....

 

[jon81uk]

You can expect the products to be a "Clubcard special price" very soon.....

Not on the value brand items.

The things that go on occasional clubcard prices (so not the longer term 2 for X prices) just alternate between the high price and the low one, it was the same before the special offers were clubcard only. So Ginsters Pasty is £2 and goes on offer at £1.25 then back up to £2 then back on offer at £1.25 and so on.

Increasing the value brand mozzarella from 65p to 80p is increased costs or similar and a desire to maintain profits.

 

[DelW]

Do people still believe it's all for the environment? It's all for shop profits nothing to do with the environment. Typical Daily Sun readers falling for it again!! The bags now cost 30p not 5p and some even cost 50p but only because there's profit to be made from them it has nothing to do with the environment!! Otherwise they wouldn't be selling bags made of plastic in the first place. C'mon go figure! They are cashing in on peoples gullibility by making them believe it's all for a good cause. I just don't know who to laugh at first , the people who believe in this environment nonsense or the supermarkets for charging people for a bag.

If people want to be the high and mighty saviour of the environment then I'd suggest starting at the airport not the supermarket.

IIRC the government legislated to end free provision of plastic bags, supermarkets had no choice but to comply.

Whatever your view of the reasons for the move, the end result is that there are far fewer discarded lightweight plastic bags blowing around the place than was the case a decade ago, which is a good outcome in my view. I wish the government would get on with tackling the scourge of single use drinks bottles and cans, far too many of which litter the countryside around me.

 

[AM9]

IIRC the government legislated to end free provision of plastic bags, supermarkets had no choice but to comply.

Whatever your view of the reasons for the move, the end result is that there are far fewer discarded lightweight plastic bags blowing around the place than was the case a decade ago, which is a good outcome in my view. I wish the government would get on with tackling the scourge of single use drinks bottles and cans, far too many of which litter the countryside around me.

That's my point, The scourge of microplastics in the soil, rivers and even the deep sea beds is to a large degree down to plastic packaging, of which the free/cheap carrier bags are a significant source.
I don't know whether the "Typical Daily Sun readers falling for it again!!" statement was aimed at me as an insult*, but it reflects the ongoing ignorance of the declining environment that surrounds any discussion on the subject. The popular media, (most of which is right wing in aim) places profit above the one thing that keeps all life viable.

* if that is your (@Mancboy ) only discussion line, then fire away.

 

[Mojo]

There are two different issues here that are being conflated. Firstly there was the mandatory minimum charge for single use plastic carrier bags of 5p that was brought in for England in autumn 2015. At the time there were a number of exemptions such as this not applying to small businesses. This charge was subsequently increased to 10p in Spring 2021 and also the number of exemptions reduced.

In recent years however, most of the major retailers have withdrawn these cheaper bags and are now only selling more higher end bags for a greater price. Most shops have also got rid of their "Bag For Life," whereby plastic re-usable bags were previously replaced free of charge if they broke.

 

[dannypye9999]

errr, it’s the law. And it has made a very nooticeable change to the environment. Pre law change, I would pick up 5-10 plastic bags on my road that had been (being charitable) ‘left’ by passing people. Within weeks of the ban: none.

It may have made a noticeable change to you but the UK is a just very small island on a huge planet it's making zero change to the environment as a whole. If plastic is so bad and the government really wanted to do their bit and help the environment then plastic bags would be banned from sale everywhere. People would then buy a rucksack for shopping and would probably visit supermarkets two weekly to do a two weekly shop rather than using their car to go almost everyday, hence less cars off the road too.

 

[Bald Rick]

It may have made a noticeable change to you but the UK is a just very small island on a huge planet it's making zero change to the environment as a whole. If plastic is so bad and the government really wanted to do their bit and help the environment then plastic bags would be banned from sale everywhere. People would then buy a rucksack for shopping and would probably visit supermarkets two weekly to do a two weekly shop rather than using their car to go almost everyday, hence less cars off the road too.

Thats about 4 leaps of logic there.

Every little helps, as they say in some supermarkets.

 

[sannox]

Our managers were very strict about getting prices right. Price changes happened overnight between Sunday and Monday and the store admin team did a weekly night shift (I was often asked to assist them - good money on a bank holiday weekend), with most promotions changing every 4 weeks. Any SETs that had been replaced were left in a vertical position until someone had been round to do a price check. If the gadget confirmed the price on the ticket, it was turned round to its normal position; if the two figures differed, the SET would be left and the gadget would generate a report that the admin manager would pick up. This all happened before the shop opened at 8am on Monday.

I wonder if this attention to detail has been lost in the rush to de-staff supermarkets. Perhaps the prospect of legal action from Trading Standards isn't enough of a financial threat compared to the amount that the supermarkets are saving.

Many stores use e-ink price tags now to reduce labour with price changes- can be done very quickly. It is great (when it works) to be able to update a shelf label there and then, no need to use computers, go to printers, cut them and install them! I remember one shift where I was handed a stack of labels to change one evening for the next day- took my whole shift and I only did shelf edges, larger stuff was just pulled out and left blank someone else did it the next day!

I worked in Safeway too but I can't remember it or others seeming as rigorous but generally prices were right most of the time! Much of the incorrect pricing we got were customer errors or misunderstandings on promotions. On the odd occasion of incorrect pricing it was managers discretion as to sell it or not. Most of the time they just honoured it if the customer passed the attitude test and it wasn't a large difference - anything big was a sorry we'll fix immediately.

 

[BingMan]

Thats about 4 leaps of logic there.

Every little helps, as they say in some supermarkets.

As the late great David MacLKay liked to say "If everybody does a little, only a little gets done".
That was in the context of the need for more government intervention in environmental measures

On the other hand, people do not go grocery shopping "almost every day". I have no idea what planet you live on.

Our household shops every day except maybe Sunday

 

[DM352]

Carrefour used to have a number of hypermarché-style large stores in the UK from 1972 omwards; they sold them (all?) to ASDA in the 90s I believe. Some are still in existence as ASDAs.

They became Gateway the late 80's and then migrated to Asda as said in the 90's. Gateway were not a good fit for the former (8?) Carrefour sites and from speaking to mgmt before Asda took over, heard was part due to Gateway not being scalable to their vast different sized store formats. Asda seemed to run better.

 

[DelW]

As the late great David MacLKay liked to say "If everybody does a little, only a little gets done".
That was in the context of the need for more government intervention in environmental measures

A little getting done is better than nothing getting done. We can all help to keep our local environment cleaner while we're waiting for that next government intervention.

 

[Yew]

A little getting done is better than nothing getting done. We can all help to keep our local environment cleaner while we're waiting for that next government intervention.

And let us hope it never comes, as it will likely be simplistic, behavioural, and stifle real technological solutions.

 

[Christmas]

Can anyone give me an update on Morrisons use if the Safeway brand? Is it still only sold in McColl's convenience stores?

 

[yorkie]

Just a gentle reminder that this thread is for Supermarket Discussion.

Spin-off topics are welcome, but we do ask that these are posted in a new thread. You are welcome to link to any new thread from this one, and vice-versa.

Thanks

 

[stadler]

Can anyone give me an update on Morrisons use if the Safeway brand? Is it still only sold in McColl's convenience stores?

I had presumed that the Safeway brand was disconnected recently. I am pretty sure all of the Mccolls and Martins shops have been turned in to Morrisons Daily now and only stock Morrisons own brand products. Up until recently the Safeway brand was solely sold in Mccolls and Martins stores and was basically just Morrisons own brand products with a different label. But now that the stores have been rebranded they seem to have switched to Morrisons own brand products. I do still see Safeway branded lorries delivering to Morrisons Daily stores but i think they are delivering Morrisons branded products now.

So perhaps the Safeway brand is now defunct for a second time? Has anyone seen Safeway branded products in the last few months?

They do still have a website though:

Safeway: Quality and Value - as always

But now that all Mccolls and Martins stores have turned in to Morrisons Daily it looks like they have nowhere to sell Safeway products? Unless they are planning on partnering with another chain soon?

 

[Peter Sarf]

I had presumed that the Safeway brand was disconnected recently. I am pretty sure all of the Mccolls and Martins shops have been turned in to Morrisons Daily now and only stock Morrisons own brand products. Up until recently the Safeway brand was solely sold in Mccolls and Martins stores and was basically just Morrisons own brand products with a different label. But now that the stores have been rebranded they seem to have switched to Morrisons own brand products. I do still see Safeway branded lorries delivering to Morrisons Daily stores but i think they are delivering Morrisons branded products now.

So perhaps the Safeway brand is now defunct for a second time? Has anyone seen Safeway branded products in the last few months?

They do still have a website though:

Safeway: Quality and Value - as always

But now that all Mccolls and Martins stores have turned in to Morrisons Daily it looks like they have nowhere to sell Safeway products? Unless they are planning on partnering with another chain soon?

Very interesting. I never knew "Safeway" still existed !. I see at the bottom of the linked web-page it mentions McColl's - the only place I see mention of a place to buy.

 

[stadler]

Very interesting. I never knew "Safeway" still existed !. I see at the bottom of the linked web-page it mentions McColl's - the only place I see mention of a place to buy.

I think lots of people were unaware the brand had lived on if they did not visit Mccolls or Martins stores. Morrisons kept the Safeway brand (after they purchased the Safeway supermarkets) specifically for sale at Mccolls and Martins stores. It seems like that webpage has not been updated for a very long time. Looking at the web archive that page has remained the same for years. So they may well have discontinued the brand last year when Morrisons Daily took over and just forgot about their website. They still have plenty of Safeway branded lorries (delivering Morrisons own brand products now instead of Safeway products) so at least those still exist for now. I have seen two Safeway lorries in the last week.