Should Supermarkets be limited to what they can sell

[trading]

Should supermarkets be limited to what they can sell. Tesco has now got stores with two floors selling everything. You go to these places and it is getting harder to find a large range of food, instead they are more interested in selling other items like tv's. Should these places be stopped from selling so many different items which is putting the small business man out of work

[eequals]

Limiting what supermarkets in what they can sell might be an alluring prospect but supporting direct government intervention in such a thing or a change in the law would be a disaster for everybody, not least for the majority of people who subscribe to this forum, who either run or want to run their own business.

To allow the government or worse still the EU start to dictate to any business what it can or cannot sell would simply mean that while supermarkets would be able to deploy some millions of pounds to restructure their operations and get round the problem, yet another new army of bureaucrats would end up targeting the easy options – people like us.

Joe

[DavidT]

I hate to say it really, since the local shops near where I grew up didn't last very long, but the smaller retailers really have to differentiate themselves from those larger ones like the 'Big T'.

People do realise that they are far more likely to get better service & better advice from the smaller outlets. Unfortunately these retailers really have to find other ways to add value to stay alive. Certainly the service, but finding the extras that can't be offered in the bigger stores... whether it be variety, include the smaller supplimentary items, add on services (installations), home delivery.

Always been involved in small business myself, but since I started in self-employment over 13 years ago now the world has been changing, and the changes are happening faster & faster over the years and although we know there are huge opportunities that keep opening up for business, the older opportunities are also closing.

[eequals]

I wholeheartedly agree with your comments Dave when it comes to smaller retailers competing with the big players by giving superior service.

Where they should start in my view is with a bit of emphasis on training so that when someone walks into a small store they can be told where to find what they looking for and be capable of coming up with the answer if they don't know exactly what that something is.

Just try asking questions like that in the average Tesco.

[trading]

So would you say that smaller shops should be given more help like extending the business rate relief. It will soon come to a situation that you will not be able to get the great customer service that small shops offer, unless something is done to help the smaller outlet survive.

Talking about supermarkets, Tesco in question, does anyone find it annoying when they go overboard with the customer service at the tills. What I mean is, when you go to the till, it does not matter how many items you have on the counter, they always ask if you would like help packing. Many a time I have been to Tesco with just a newspaper and a bottled drink on the counter and they ask like they are programmed, would you like help with your packing. I can understand it when you have loads of items but it makes me laugh when you only have a couple of items.

Also, has any one seen when you are behind lots of people at the tills, someone rushing to the tills to open them up like the advert says. i have never seen this once and the other day i was in a line with around ten other people and they did not open another till