Superstore wins fight to open three hours longer (From Daily Echo)

Who ever thought they wouldn't 'get permission'? One more of the BIG 4 wins against the small shopkeeper. Now, there's a surprise!

portswood dragged kicking and screaming in the 21st century , cut your profits and up your game is the way to reply.

It's a grossly over-developed site with less than half the things they promised in the planning stages eg. housing and health centre etc.
Been in their once for all of the few minutes it took me to get back out again!

I would admit to my knowledge o the shops in Portswood but from what I have seen on not infrequent visits is that relatively few are in direct competition. From observation there are many charity shops, hairdressers, small cafes, and some service outlets none of which have overlapping interests. Waitrose, Farmfoods and Iceland should be quite capable of competing, and I suspect that the Polish and Oriental outlets will retain a considerable amount of customer loyalty. When it comes down to it, it seems to me that the business mainly affected would be the two green grocers but as a trade, they have been under threat for many years, hardly a recent phenomenon. I haven't seen many butchers, grocers, off licences or other retailers in the locality.
Arguably Sainsbury's attracts customers from other locations but again will only compete adversely where there is direct competition with what it sells. Perhaps the most detrimental thing is that having a car park directly under the store obviates the need to walk through the other shops which is a shame albeit it resolves local on-street parking issues and is "convenient". What would be good is if customers were in effect forced to walk to the shop which would create an opportunity increasing the awareness of the more interesting and niche type shops that could be developed.

I get my groceries from longs, and split most shopping between the smaller shops and waitrose.

I'm in highfield with no car and always find it just too far to walk to sainsburys. But its not like Longs is staying open longer than 5pm is it?!

Nothing is open until then, and i'll be using the service more as i need it. I don't see the problem with extending the hours past other shops closing.
Even waitrose!

I quiet like shopping there

Why cant everything just be 24 hour like the rest of the world? Why do we have to be different?
Thats one of the best things about going on holiday that everything doesnt suddenly shut as soon as it gets dark.

“We have enough problems already with student noise and nuisance, I do not see it serving the community.”

Im not sure how opening a supermarket until 11 will create more student noise, as the above statement implies. A pub or club maybe, but a supermarket?

Nicole23 wrote:
Why cant everything just be 24 hour like the rest of the world? Why do we have to be different?
Thats one of the best things about going on holiday that everything doesnt suddenly shut as soon as it gets dark.

They just shut in Spain for example, for several hours for a siesta in the middle of the day. The fact is the UK works longer hours than most of Europe, on average.
There are some people who hold Sundays as special and many of us will remember when it was a day of rest for the majority. If you can't do your shopping during the rest of the week, you need to look at your time management.

sotonboy84 wrote:
It's a grossly over-developed site with less than half the things they promised in the planning stages eg. housing and health centre etc.
Been in their once for all of the few minutes it took me to get back out again!

I have been told by one of the local doctors that were supposed to be moving onto the site that the rates were way to inflated to sustain, I think they are biding their time and they will use the space behind the store where the bus body shop and paint shops were to build a fuel station. I maybe wrong but beleive they have planning permission for a fuel station where the car sales is along Stdenys road, but that's away from the site. They will get their own way they always do

Maine Lobster, I dont know where you get your information from but I have lived in Spain for the last eight years and non of the big supermarkets shut in the afternoon. They open at 9.15am and shut at 9.15 in the evening Sunday's and fiesta days are when they shut. The only shops that shut are the little grociers in the villages between 2pm and 5.pm. When was the last time you were in Spain?

Maine Lobster wrote:

Nicole23 wrote:
Why cant everything just be 24 hour like the rest of the world? Why do we have to be different?
Thats one of the best things about going on holiday that everything doesnt suddenly shut as soon as it gets dark.

They just shut in Spain for example, for several hours for a siesta in the middle of the day. The fact is the UK works longer hours than most of Europe, on average.
There are some people who hold Sundays as special and many of us will remember when it was a day of rest for the majority. If you can't do your shopping during the rest of the week, you need to look at your time management.

However many of us don't hold sunday in any special regard. I can remember when nothing opened on sundays - it was boring as hell.

Plum Pudding wrote:
I would admit to my knowledge o the shops in Portswood but from what I have seen on not infrequent visits is that relatively few are in direct competition. From observation there are many charity shops, hairdressers, small cafes, and some service outlets none of which have overlapping interests. Waitrose, Farmfoods and Iceland should be quite capable of competing, and I suspect that the Polish and Oriental outlets will retain a considerable amount of customer loyalty. When it comes down to it, it seems to me that the business mainly affected would be the two green grocers but as a trade, they have been under threat for many years, hardly a recent phenomenon. I haven't seen many butchers, grocers, off licences or other retailers in the locality.
Arguably Sainsbury's attracts customers from other locations but again will only compete adversely where there is direct competition with what it sells. Perhaps the most detrimental thing is that having a car park directly under the store obviates the need to walk through the other shops which is a shame albeit it resolves local on-street parking issues and is "convenient". What would be good is if customers were in effect forced to walk to the shop which would create an opportunity increasing the awareness of the more interesting and niche type shops that could be developed.

Er, so the small cafes in Portswood don't have any overlapping interest with the cafe situated inside Sainsbury's?

Maine Lobster wrote:

Nicole23 wrote:
Why cant everything just be 24 hour like the rest of the world? Why do we have to be different?
Thats one of the best things about going on holiday that everything doesnt suddenly shut as soon as it gets dark.

They just shut in Spain for example, for several hours for a siesta in the middle of the day. The fact is the UK works longer hours than most of Europe, on average.
There are some people who hold Sundays as special and many of us will remember when it was a day of rest for the majority. If you can't do your shopping during the rest of the week, you need to look at your time management.

Wow - you've managed to be smug and condescending all in comment.

Unfortunately some us just don't have the spare time during the week because, oohh I dunno, work commitments, family commitments etc.

Obviously you have your life 'time managed' to perfection perhaps, which might indicate you have too much time on your hands anyway.

Plum Pudding wrote:
I would admit to my knowledge o the shops in Portswood but from what I have seen on not infrequent visits is that relatively few are in direct competition. From observation there are many charity shops, hairdressers, small cafes, and some service outlets none of which have overlapping interests. Waitrose, Farmfoods and Iceland should be quite capable of competing, and I suspect that the Polish and Oriental outlets will retain a considerable amount of customer loyalty. When it comes down to it, it seems to me that the business mainly affected would be the two green grocers but as a trade, they have been under threat for many years, hardly a recent phenomenon. I haven't seen many butchers, grocers, off licences or other retailers in the locality.
Arguably Sainsbury's attracts customers from other locations but again will only compete adversely where there is direct competition with what it sells. Perhaps the most detrimental thing is that having a car park directly under the store obviates the need to walk through the other shops which is a shame albeit it resolves local on-street parking issues and is "convenient". What would be good is if customers were in effect forced to walk to the shop which would create an opportunity increasing the awareness of the more interesting and niche type shops that could be developed.

You talk utter utter rubbish....where shall we start?
Here we go.....Sainsburys have a cheap clothes dept direct competition to New Look and the charity shops, (Peacocks,which now shut)...they sell fruit and veg...direct competition to Longs and the Asian Supermarkets (Gannaways is now shut).....they sell alcohol....direct competition to the 3 or 4 off licenses (2 have now shut)
They sell newspapers and magazines/tobacco products....direct competion to the 2 or 3 newsagents.
They sell greetings cards/wrapping paper/stationary products.....blah blah blah................
....(even I'm bored now)
I think you can see my point.

Next step for Sainsburys....24 hour opening...they always get their way!