Self-service checkouts.

[Rico1304]

SKI when you do a 'big shop' do you always have chippy for tea? And I bet you open the fridge door when its full and have a nice warm glow...

[Johnni]

That's very true. Why use a supermarket when you can pay over twice the price for a fraction of the choice of produce?

 

It hurts me to say it (I'm always Queen of the Underdog) but no person, unless they were absolutely minted, could afford not to shop at a supermarket these days. That's aside from not having time to go to trudging round 10 different shops when you can get everything you need under one roof. It's a sad sign of the times.

 

Unfortunatly this is true, You can get much better Produce and Meat especially away from the supermarket but because its 'all under one roof' i guess the convinience factor outweights the quality and as SKI said people cant be arsed to go here and there.

You might be cheaper than Tesco Anny Road for most of your products but alot of smaller stores i seen are'nt plus the opening hrs suck as some don't open till 10am and close at 5pm so have to compete with Tesco who are still open when people finish work.

 

Where i live there is a row of shops - butcher, florists, chemist, newsagent & chippy but everything they sell is more expensive than ASDA which is where we shop. The only thing we get from there is meat sometimes as the quality is worth it.

[Remmie]

I always use the local butcher and although it is more expensive it's much better quality so worth it. An example being supermarket bacon generally shrinks in the pan as the water burns off. Butcher's bacon has far less water so tastes better and retains it's size. I reckon 6 rashers from the butchers is worth 10 from the supermarket.

 

Never used a self service till. Much prefer to get served by a mucky checkout slut. Can recomend Waitrose for this over tescos and sainsburys

The talent of check out girl is directly proportional to the quality of the establishment. The minge of M&S and Waitrose is pretty damn high, whilst some of the Netto boilers are truly horendi. The worst thing I ever saw was at the busy bee in Preston (for those who've never been, Busy bee tend to see 300 pizzas for a £1).

[old skool tom]

surely this is a field day for thieves?

 

i'll let you know when my local asda installs them :whistle:

[old skool tom]

The talent of check out girl is directly proportional to the quality of the establishment. The minge of M&S and Waitrose is pretty damn high, whilst some of the Netto boilers are truly horendi. The worst thing I ever saw was at the busy bee in Preston (for those who've never been, Busy bee tend to see 300 pizzas for a £1).

 

i'd willingly leave the pound in my trolley every shopping visit to be served by a stunner!

 

its the little things in life that could easily make us all a little happier

Edited December 13, 2009 by old skool tom

[Ezekiel 25:17]

I would feel less guilty stealing than the guilt I feel using these, it feels like everyone is watching you and S31 is right, the Morrisons ones are indeed c'est ridicule.

[She Knows It]

Even the girl? Fair play if you can make her behave, you may have turned a potential negging into a repping. Personally it's the children I feel sorry for, they don't understand why they aren't allowed all these things and have to feel trapped and still. That's really uncomfortable for them when they have so much energy. Plus the increasingly agitated parents have to stoop to extensive measures in desperation to stop the continued embarrassment.

 

While I may not be a parent, I do have a little sister 10 years my junior and I remember coming to the children in supermarkets decision after putting up with her manic antics a couple of times (climbing stuff and doing those big knee slides etc).

 

Like I say, the most obvious answer is online shopping and what I envisage when I father little Remmie's.

 

Firstly, I can't believe those pigs have been purely ornamental for this long. Secondly, I can't shop online, because unfortunately I have to check every single bit of packaging for traces of nuts (not the pig kind). It would make my life so much easier if I could. Thirdly, don't feel sorry for the kids. Disappointment is a big part of life. To be met with "No you can't", halfway through "Can I have...?" teaches them that the world doesn't revolve around them and that they have to work hard for what they receive. Thus, when they turn 13, they won't be out robbing pensioners (I hope).

 

SKI when you do a 'big shop' do you always have chippy for tea? And I bet you open the fridge door when its full and have a nice warm glow...

 

There's no better feeling than a full fridge. Especially when you've had to chuck things out that aren't really finished with, like that jar of Branston with 1cm left in the bottom, in order to fit all the new goodies in. That's when your fridge contains nice things, like fresh olives and hummous; not just a bottle of ketchup and a dried up jar of dijon mustard. I love big shop days.

[Ezekiel 25:17]

Firstly, I can't believe those pigs have been purely ornamental for this long. Secondly, I can't shop online, because unfortunately I have to check every single bit of packaging for traces of nuts (not the pig kind). It would make my life so much easier if I could. Thirdly, don't feel sorry for the kids. Disappointment is a big part of life. To be met with "No you can't", halfway through "Can I have...?" teaches them that the world doesn't revolve around them and that they have to work hard for what they receive. Thus, when they turn 13, they won't be out robbing pensioners (I hope).

 

 

 

There's no better feeling than a full fridge. Especially when you've had to chuck things out that aren't really finished with, like that jar of Branston with 1cm left in the bottom, in order to fit all the new goodies in. That's when your fridge contains nice things, like fresh olives and hummous; not just a bottle of ketchup and a dried up jar of dijon mustard. I love big shop days.

 

 

I went to a greek once Liz but the food was shite, couldn't taste anything, waiter said I had no sense of hummous.

[She Knows It]

I went to a greek once Liz but the food was shite, couldn't taste anything, waiter said I had no sense of hummous.

 

Alan, that's woeful. I'd neg you for that, but instead I'll leave it up to everyone else, because I'm too nice.

[Stu Monty]

Anny, I can assure you that my local butchers are at least double the price of Asda. I'm not disputing it might be better quality, but I can't afford to spend a tenner just on the meat component of a meal every night of the week. Even their sausages and mince are over a fiver a pound.

 

I do buy meat from my local farm now and again, and stock up. But again, I find they're greedy bastards. You can get the meat from the farm for buttons, but every month there's a local farmers market, where they triple the price of the meat, again making it far more expensive than the supermarkets. My son has loads of allergies, and can't eat processed food, so I have to make the majority of meals from scratch. These people who say it's cheaper to eat fresh than processed are talking through their arses.

 

Nobody can compete against the supermarkets now. They're sending big chains tits up, so what chance does a little shopkeeper have? I hope it's different for you living in a more rural area where people depend on local shops, but in towns and cities they're obsolete now.

 

It's desperately sad, but the truth is that we are consumers, not charities. We'll get the best deal we can because the vast majority of us are financially in no position to have any other option.

 

What chance do the little retailers have if nobody is prepared to use them? You can try and pretend that you have no free will in the matter but the fact that WalMart can order four billion pints of milk and sell them at Asda for -36p doesn't mean that you have to buy it. If you do continue to buy solely on price then don't be surprised as your options become fewer and fewer, capital is consolidated in fewer hands and the big stores take more and more ownership of your community. Don't be surprised when everyone in the area works in Asda or Tesco because all the other stores are gone. Don't be surprised when they ban unions and slash health and safety to the bone, as that adds extra cost and extra cost might mean an extra 2p on a loaf. Of course any firm supplying them is also being squeezed to the maximum, so they are cutting corners and firing people (increasing efficiency I think it's called).

 

And as your community falls apart you console yourself with the fact that you got two for one yoghurts.

[She Knows It]

What chance do the little retailers have if nobody is prepared to use them? You can try and pretend that you have no free will in the matter but the fact that WalMart can order four billion pints of milk and sell them at Asda for -36p doesn't mean that you have to buy it. If you do continue to buy solely on price then don't be surprised as your options become fewer and fewer, capital is consolidated in fewer hands and the big stores take more and more ownership of your community. Don't be surprised when everyone in the area works in Asda or Tesco because all the other stores are gone. Don't be surprised when they ban unions and slash health and safety to the bone, as that adds extra cost and extra cost might mean an extra 2p on a loaf. Of course any firm supplying them is also being squeezed to the maximum, so they are cutting corners and firing people (increasing efficiency I think it's called).

 

And as your community falls apart you console yourself with the fact that you got two for one yoghurts.

 

Okay, Mister leftie pie-in-the-sky idealist, here are a few questions for you about free will.

 

You're a single parent, bringing up 3 kids. After you've paid your rent, childcare and other bills you're left just short of 100 quid a week. Out of this you have to provide food and clothes for a growing family, cleaning stuff, toiletries, run a car (which is essential for your job), holidays, pay for activities, haircuts, pocket money, birthdays, and a hundred and one other day-to-day expenses that arise. Factor in that from when you drop your children off at 8.30 you don't get another chance to visit a shop until you've picked them up from childcare at 6pm.

 

At what point during that day do pay a visit to your local shop that is open 9-5? How would you even begin to manage that budget, when you consider the cost of local produce and fair-trade coffee? I'll tell you. You couldn't do it.

 

My children are my priority. Making sure they're fed and clothed and looked after as best I can is what I live for. If a million local shopkeepers go bust it's not my concern. They can go on the dole and probably have a better standard of living than I do. Some of us don't have the luxury of a social conscience. I have no savings, and at the moment I'm living hand-to-mouth, like millions of others. If paying a quid for 4 pints of milk is something I should be ashamed of then I'm afraid I'm brazen. I don't give a flying twat.

[Uncle_Meat]

Barter system. The barter system rocks.

 

Being where I am, I do a fair bit of work for farmers. One bloke I know pays me in meat, another in eggs, a couple of places pay me in organic veg. The pub down the road pays me in beer and pork scratchings for the occasional computer-related mishap they have.

 

This way, I get shitloads of high quality local produce without the heartache of paying loads for it.

 

That's what we need, a barter-based economy.

[Stu Monty]

Okay, Mister leftie pie-in-the-sky idealist, here are a few questions for you about free will.

 

You're a single parent, bringing up 3 kids. After you've paid your rent, childcare and other bills you're left just short of 100 quid a week. Out of this you have to provide food and clothes for a growing family, cleaning stuff, toiletries, run a car (which is essential for your job), holidays, pay for activities, haircuts, pocket money, birthdays, and a hundred and one other day-to-day expenses that arise. Factor in that from when you drop your children off at 8.30 you don't get another chance to visit a shop until you've picked them up from childcare at 6pm.

 

At what point during that day do pay a visit to your local shop that is open 9-5? How would you even begin to manage that budget, when you consider the cost of local produce and fair-trade coffee? I'll tell you. You couldn't do it.

 

My children are my priority. Making sure they're fed and clothed and looked after as best I can is what I live for. If a million local shopkeepers go bust it's not my concern. They can go on the dole and probably have a better standard of living than I do. Some of us don't have the luxury of a social conscience. I have no savings, and at the moment I'm living hand-to-mouth, like millions of others. If paying a quid for 4 pints of milk is something I should be ashamed of then I'm afraid I'm brazen. I don't give a flying twat.

 

It's not idealism Liz, just realism.

 

I'm just pointing out what everyone is doing by handing over the keys to the city to Walmart and Tesco. When your grandkids school uniform bears the Tesco logo you'll care about a social conscience.

[Liverpool lad]

I reckon capitalism will one day destroy itself, don't know when or how, but I am working on it

[Ezekiel 25:17]

Barter system. The barter system rocks.

 

Being where I am, I do a fair bit of work for farmers. One bloke I know pays me in meat, another in eggs, a couple of places pay me in organic veg. The pub down the road pays me in beer and pork scratchings for the occasional computer-related mishap they have.

 

This way, I get shitloads of high quality local produce without the heartache of paying loads for it.

 

That's what we need, a barter-based economy.

 

A guy I used to work for also paid me in 'Meat' but I don't want to talk about it.

[Carradona]

Tesco are bound to be losing out on loads of money by using these machines. I always see people stealing stuff by just putting it into their bag.

 

The M&S machines are pretty good though.

[Guest The Big Green Bastard]

Barter system. The barter system rocks.

 

Being where I am, I do a fair bit of work for farmers. One bloke I know pays me in meat, another in eggs, a couple of places pay me in organic veg. The pub down the road pays me in beer and pork scratchings for the occasional computer-related mishap they have.

 

This way, I get shitloads of high quality local produce without the heartache of paying loads for it.

 

That's what we need, a barter-based economy.

 

[Spy Bee]

Barter system. The barter system rocks.

 

Being where I am, I do a fair bit of work for farmers. One bloke I know pays me in meat, another in eggs, a couple of places pay me in organic veg. The pub down the road pays me in beer and pork scratchings for the occasional computer-related mishap they have.

 

This way, I get shitloads of high quality local produce without the heartache of paying loads for it.

 

That's what we need, a barter-based economy.

 

That's a good system, but it's limited. Say I wanted some meat, a farmer wanted his computer fixing and you wanted some bananas (we're imaging that I'm a banana grower/salesman). Well that's fairly simple, but the chain gets longer.

 

What we should come up with is a system of IOU's.

[melons]

Tesco are bound to be losing out on loads of money by using these machines. I always see people stealing stuff by just putting it into their bag.

 

The M&S machines are pretty good though.

 

Safeway offered something like this 15 years ago, you'd scan your items as you put them in the trolley then the end you paid your bill and done dusted. Didn't they go bust/ loose money/ morrisons bought them out. Self fulfilling hopefully.

[RJ Fan club]

Safeway offered something like this 15 years ago, you'd scan your items as you put them in the trolley then the end you paid your bill and done dusted. Didn't they go bust/ loose money/ morrisons bought them out. Self fulfilling hopefully.

 

Yeah they got bought out by Morrisons but were still profitable. Also loads of supermarkets still do self scan. At least I know Sainos and Waitrose do down here.

 

Not everyone is a robbing Jew.

[TheBitch]

Safeway offered something like this 15 years ago, you'd scan your items as you put them in the trolley then the end you paid your bill and done dusted. Didn't they go bust/ loose money/ morrisons bought them out. Self fulfilling hopefully.

 

 

We used to have a Gateway where we live, and a Fine Fare.

 

This has nothing to do with self service machines by the way. Just thought I'd let the good people of the GF know this.

[melons]

Yeah they got bought out by Morrisons but were still profitable. Also loads of supermarkets still do self scan. At least I know Sainos and Waitrose do down here.

 

Not everyone is a robbing Jew.

 

I was just pointing out its been going on for years, people pretending to scan things and them just slipping in the trolley.

[RJ Fan club]

We used to have a Gateway where we live, and a Fine Fare.

 

This has nothing to do with self service machines by the way. Just thought I'd let the good people of the GF know this.

 

The FineFare on South Road in Waterloo was ace. But it closed in about 1982. But if you wanted high tech high spec; Victor Value on College Road in Crosby had a barcode reader back around the same time.

 

That shit seemed as technologically advanced as a lightsaber when you were about five.

[RJ Fan club]

I was just pointing out its been going on for years, people pretending to scan things and them just slipping in the trolley.

 

Luckily for me not everyone does or is under suspicion. You can only get a liquor cabinet like mine through dishonest means or 'self scanning'.