The Week In Retail Issue 15

RETAIL

THE WEEK IN

HFSS FOODS

HFSS PROMO RESTRICTIONS

OBESITY STRATEGY TO HIT STORES ILLICIT TOBACCO TRADE

NEW JTI ‘POSTCODE CALCULATOR’ HOW IS ILLICIT AFFECTING YOUR AREA? RETAILER INTERVIEW

30 IS THE NEW 20

ALSO:

CLICK HERE TO PLAY VIDEO

INVERURIE REFIT FOCUSES ON 30% MARGIN

+

FOOD WASTE APP WAR ON CASH BODY CAM ROLLOUT

DEALING WITH DIFFICULT CUSTOMERS Commercial Partner:

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THE WEEK IN RETAIL

EDITOR’S COMMENT SHARE YOUR NEWS AND VIEWS WITH ME AT ABEGLEY@55NORTH.COM

STICK OR TWIST? Coronavirus is certainly presenting local retailers with an array of interesting new challenges and, depending upon how you choose to look at it, many new opportunities. One of the most critical challenges facing all retailers is undoubtedly what to do about the huge spike in sales over the last few months. The vast majority of retailers have done very well through Covid-19, thank you very much, and while some will no doubt have used the extra funds to pay down existing debt, many others will have been rapidly building a war chest in recent months.

Broadly speaking there are two options here: stockpile the cash for a rainy day to help when the inevitable happens and times get tough again. That’s an attractive option, but is it the best possible use of those reserves? Is it perhaps better to put that cash to good use now when the tills are still ringing and try out some new strategies for growing and future-proofing your business for the longer term?

Those were the questions bouncing around my head as I interviewed Inverurie retailer Scott Graham for this issue’s cover story. Scott’s view of the dilemma above is pretty clear. He’s just completed the biggest refit of his store since he

first took it over about 11 years ago. Granted, Scott isn’t having to dig too deep into his reserves because he quickly worked out that he could secure a non-repayable £25k Covid loan and combine that with the £20k or so he is going to save during his rates-free year to pretty much pay for the refit. Entrepreneurialism at its best, that.

But the fact remains that he could have saved the £45k or so and treated him and his family to a nice holiday or a new set of wheels – but Scott is clear that he views this Covid-inspired opportunity as a once-in-a-lifetime chance to build a store that will see him through the next 10 year lease that he’s just signed. He had been building up a list of things that he wanted to do to his store, principally to move GP from the industry-standard 20% or so to much closer to the 30% he reckons he needs to stay profitable and secure a sustainable business long into the future. This was his chance to bring his vision to life in brick, timber and snazzy vinyls.

Working out what to do with spare cash is a rare and very welcome challenge for retailers – but it’s a hugely important issue. If nothing else, the last few months have shown us all that you never know what’s round the corner.

ANTONYBEGLEY ANTONYBEGLEY ANTONYBEGLEY

ANTONY BEGLEY, EDITOR

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 3

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CONTENTS

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 WWW.SLRMAG.CO.UK

6

16 THIS WEEK’S NEWS IN BRIEF

HOW’S YOUR WEEK BEEN... SCOTT GRAHAM?

Draft legislation poses more challenges for retailers, while Amazon has big plans for online grocery.

8 COVID-19 UPDATE

A ROUND-UP OF THE LATEST CORONAVIRUS NEWS FROM THE LAST SEVEN DAYS.

26 OPINION With 5,400 ATMs shut because of Covid-19, access to cash is becoming a hugely important issue for many communities, says SGF’s John Lee.

Scott didn’t let Covid-19 get in the way of a long overdue major refit.

12 ADVICE: DIFFICULT CUSTOMERS

22 ILLICIT TOBACCO

SOME TIPS TO HELP MAINTAIN CONTROL IN CHALLENGING SITUATIONS.

DISCOVER THE EXTENT OF THE PROBLEM IN YOUR AREA WITH JTI’S NEW TOOL.

10 NEWS SPECIAL: OBESITY STRATEGY

14 RETAIL CRIME

24 OUT THE BOX: TOO GOOD TO GO

CO-OP STAFF ARE ISSUED WITH BODY-

THE UK GOVERNMENT’S NEW PLAN WILL MAKE LIFE HARDER FOR RETAILERS IN ENGLAND.

TWITTER.COM/SLRMAG

WORN CAMERAS TO KEEP THEM SAFER. 21 PICKS OF THE WEEK

WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/SLRMAG

AN INNOVATIVE APP HELPS LOCAL RETAILERS REDUCE FOOD WASTE AND ALSO DELIGHT CUSTOMERS.

WWW.SLRMAG.CO.UK

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 5

NEWS DIGEST

THIS WEEK’S NEWS FOR ALL THE LATEST NEWS, HEAD TO WWW.SLRMAG.CO.UK/CATEGORY/NEWS/

SUN RISES

LEGISLATION

1 August. Monday to Friday

DRAFT FINANCE BILL SET TO ADD YET MORE CHALLENGES FOR RETAILERS

editions will rise by 5p while

THE UK GOVERNMENT RECENTLY PUBLISHED DRAFT LEGISLATION

weekend editions will increase

TO BE INCLUDED WITHIN THE FINANCE BILL 2020-21 FEATURING

by 10p. All percentage margins

SEVERAL IMPORTANT ISSUES THAT WILL IMPACT ON THE LOCAL

for retailers will be maintained

RETAILING SECTOR.

The cover price on all editions of The Sun and The Sun on Sunday will rise from Saturday

at their current rates.

NEW LIDL APP Lidl Ireland has launched a new rewards app offering customers guaranteed savings each week and the chance to win instant rewards. The app offers shoppers at least €10 a week in coupons which can be redeemed at the till by scanning their Lidl Plus cards. They’ll also receive a

The draft legislation to be included in the Finance Bill 2020-21 has been published by the UK Government and includes several important points that would have an impact on the local retailing sector.

Q Making Tax Digital (MTD) – a roadmap for MTD has been published alongside long-term plans for tax administration reform. Legislation in the Finance Bill will extend Making Tax Digital for VAT to all businesses below the

VAT threshold from April 2022.

MTD will be extended to Income Tax Self-Assessment from April 2023.

Q Alcohol duty system – The UK government will, before the end of September 2020, publish a call for evidence in relation to reform of the alcohol duty system.

Q Plastic Packaging Tax – the deadline for responses to proposals around a ‘Plastic Packaging Tax’ have been extended to 20 August 2020.

digital scratchcard offering the chance to win prizes every time they shop.

UNCLE BEN’S RECALL Mars Food is voluntarily recalling select production batches of Uncle Ben’s Brown Basmati 250g Ready-to-heat rice due to the “possibility of the presence of glass”. Mars is working with retailers to remove product with specific best before codes from 17 Nov 2020 to 19 Jul 2021.

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NEW ILLICIT TRADE ‘POSTCODE CALCULATOR’ JTI has today announced the launch of a new ‘Postcode Calculator’, a free-touse online tool which enables retailers to find out how badly their local area is being affected by illicit tobacco.

Retailers can enter their postcode area and find out how many seizures and/or prosecutions have taken place near that location since 2017, including estimates of the quantity and total value of illegal tobacco reported.

There is also the option to expand their search to cover the wider area (e.g. from LU Luton to East of England)

to view the percentage of non-UK duty paid cigarettes and hand-rolling tobacco in their region versus the UK average.

The new interactive feature has been added to JTI’s dedicated Don’t Be Complicit in Illicit microsite which has also benefitted from a content update and fresh new look, and continues to play an important part in JTI’s fight against the illicit trade.

For more information on the new Postcode Calculator, please turn to page 22.

NEWS DIGEST

THIS WEEK’S NEWS FOR ALL THE LATEST NEWS, HEAD TO WWW.SLRMAG.CO.UK/CATEGORY/NEWS/

HOME DELIVERY

AMAZON TARGETS ‘MILLIONS OF ONLINE GROCERY CUSTOMERS’ IN 2020

SCOTMID PAYPOINT DEAL Scotmid has announced an extension to its partnership with PayPoint. The deal will see the continuation of PayPoint services across 211 stores with a major benefit

AMAZON HAS UNVEILED A NEW

cited as being PayPoint’s

GROCERY DELIVERY SERVICE

Cash Out service. During

FREE TO PRIME MEMBERS AND

the last three months of the

TARGETS SERVICING ‘MILLIONS

pandemic, more than 44,000

OF CUSTOMERS’ BY THE END

Cash Out payments have been

OF 2020.

processed through Scotmid stores, totalling £1.5m.

Amazon is moving up a gear in the online grocery battle zone with the launch on Tuesday of free same- or next-day home delivery on orders over £40 for Amazon Prime subscribers in London and parts of the Home Counties. A previous trial in the same geographic area saw Prime members able to access the Amazon Fresh service by paying an additional monthly fee or a delivery charge per order.

Shoppers can choose from around 10,000 products across the fresh, chilled and frozen categories. Around 40 postcodes in Surrey will also have access to a faster offer, with a possible same-day delivery before midnight on orders made by 9pm.

The online giant has also announced that it will roll the service out to “multiple cities” by the end of this year.

QUORN PEOPLE PERSON Quorn Foods has appointed Tongwen Zhao into the role of Director of People & Planet, new position created to accelerate the company’s drive to be a business of the future with an environmental mission at its core. Zhao joins from

HIM & MCA REBRAND AS LUMINA INTELLIGENCE

Unilever.

HIM and MCA Insight, the research and insight division of William Reed, has relaunched under a new brand, Lumina Intelligence.

The newly renamed business is also launching a new analytics and data visualisation solution that will bring all the company’s data sources under one roof.

Scottish Grocers’ Federation

The launch of Lumina Intelligence will be supported with a new website (www.lumina-intelligence.com) and social media platforms.

Jill Livesey, MD, said: “Our plan is to inspire the global food and drink industry with deep, actionable insights, powered by the world’s best analytics technology.”

NEW SGF SITE has unveiled a refreshed website featuring easily accessible advice and guidance for members, full details of staff and National Executive members, and information on SGF’s calendar of events.

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 7

NEWS SPECIAL

COVID-19 UPDATE FOR ALL THE LATEST CORONAVIRUS NEWS, HEAD TO WWW.SLRMAG.CO.UK/CATEGORY/NEWS/

SGF MEMBERS BOOST The growth in popularity of the convenience sector during the pandemic has been reflected in a surge of new

TRADING

£1.9BN OF ‘LOST RETAIL SALES‘ IN SCOTLAND DURING PANDEMIC

corporate members for the

NEW ANALYSIS BY THE SCOTTISH RETAIL CONSORTIUM HAS

Scottish Grocers‘ Federation.

SHOWN THAT RETAILERS IN SCOTLAND LOST ALMOST £2BN IN

These include Calbee, Shoply,

SALES IN THE FIRST FOUR MONTHS OF THE PANDEMIC.

Lincoln Commercial Funding, Ian McLeod Distillers, William Grant and Sons, StaffSafe, GC Thermal Solutions, Too Good to Go and Motor Fuel Group.

SHIELDING PAUSED The Scottish Government has said people who have been advised to shield because of Covid-19 will no longer have to do so from 1 August. The move is a pause and not an end to the practice and Deputy First Minister John Swinney

A new analysis undertaken by the Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) and published a month after non-essential shops were permitted to re-open has found that retailers in Scotland lost £1.9bn of retail sales during the first four months of the coronavirus pandemic.

Scottish retail sales recorded four successive months of doubledigit decline between March and June. The analysis, based on Scottish Government and SRC data, shows the sheer scale of the retail sales that were lost during this period compared to the same period last year.

The performance of Scottish retail sales improved in June compared to recent months but was still down almost a fifth on the same period last year, and lagged behind that of the UK as a whole.

SRC Director David Lonsdale said: “These figures are stark and show that retail sales crumbled over the first four months of the pandemic. Shops and retail jobs depend on the ongoing patronage of the public and whilst the situation is gradually improving, it remains particularly acute in our city centres where stores are suffering huge drops in footfall.”

said that shielding would be reintroduced if necessary.

DRINKING HALVES British shoppers consumed 1.3bn litres of alcohol during lockdown, down from 2bn litres for the same period last year, according to Nielsen.

This despite consumers spending £7.7bn on alcohol in supermarkets, £1.9bn more the same time last year.

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GREGGS PRIORITISES DIGITAL TO COMBAT COVID LOSSES Greggs is to roll out click & collect and delivery services nationwide in the coming months and will transition the 800 outlets that have already re-opened for takeaway only into combined ‘walk in’ and digital services.

The move came as Greggs posted a pre-tax loss of £65.2m for the 26 weeks up to 27 June 2020. Like-for-like sales

were down by 49% in the six-month period despite increasing 11.7% in the first nine weeks of 2020.

The company said that the digital channels (click & collect, home delivery) will help it serve additional customers in a safe and effective manner while social distancing measures remain in place.

NEWS SPECIAL

COVID-19 UPDATE FOR ALL THE LATEST CORONAVIRUS NEWS, HEAD TO WWW.SLRMAG.CO.UK/CATEGORY/NEWS/

ENGLAND SET FOR BAN ON HFSS PROMOS

VIRTUAL QUEUING APP

LOCAL RETAILERS IN ENGLAND WILL FACE A RANGE OF NEW CHALLENGES INCLUDING A BAN ON CERTAIN PROMOS ON

T

‘UNHEALTHY’ FOOD AND SITING RESTRICTIONS IN-STORE AS PART OF THE UK GOVERNMENT’S NEW OBESITY STRATEGY.

he UK government has unveiled a package of measures as part of a new obesity strategy to “get the nation fit and healthy” and “protect themselves against Covid-19”.

The move will see the end of a range of promotional mechanics on products deemed to be ‘unhealthy’, generally products that are designated as being high in salt, sugar and fat. The ban will only apply to retailers in England with

Scotland having ‘paused’ a similar Bill in June.

Key measures include banning ‘unhealthy’ food ads, ending BOGOF and other promotions and a new consultation on front-of-pack nutritional labelling.

The Association of Convenience Stores has urged the government to consider the impact of the new strategy on local shops. For more detail, turn to page 10.

With face coverings now mandatory in stores, the Retail of Alcohol Standards Group (RASG) has produced a new customer-facing poster to help retailers warn customers that look under 25 that they may be asked to remove their face coverings to help check their age when they are attempting to buy age-restricted products.

Regardless of coronavirus, the law requires to refuse sales of age-restricted products if a customer’s age cannot be verified.

Retailers can download the poster direct from the ACS website.

TECH SOLUTIONS

AGE-MASKING CHALLENGES AHEAD

Sainsbury’s is testing a virtual queuing system in five of its stores using the ufirst app in an attempt to help employees manage queues and the flow of customers as well as enhancing the shopper experience. The app lets customers retain their place in the virtual queue using their smartphone with an alert letting them know when they’ve reached the front and will be extremely useful in the event of a second Covid-19 spike.

The company is also rolling out its SmartShop scan, pay and go app to more of its convenience format stores, with over 110 sites live in the very near future.

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 9

NEWS SPECIAL

OBESITY STRATEGY HFSS FOOD PROMOTIONS AND MARKETING

NEW OBESITY STRATEGY UNVEILED FOR ENGLAND WHILE THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT RECENTLY DECIDED TO PAUSE ITS ‘JUNK FOOD PROMO BAN’, THE UK GOVERNMENT HAS DECIDED TO PRESS AHEAD WITH ITS OBESITY STRATEGY – A MOVE THAT WILL

T

HAVE SEVERE REPERCUSSIONS FOR LOCAL RETAILERS IN ENGLAND.

KEY POINTS

he UK government has unveiled a package of Q Ban on TV and online adverts for foods high in fat, sugar and salt before 9pm measures as part of its new obesity strategy, Q End of deals like BOGOFs on ostensibly to help “get the nation fit and healthy” “unhealthy“ foods high in salt, sugar and “protect themselves against Covid-19 and protect the and fat NHS”. The move, however, is set to have severe repercussions Q Calories to be displayed on menus to for local retailers in England as it will see the end of a help people make healthier choices range of promotional mechanics on products deemed to be when eating out – while alcoholic ‘unhealthy’, generally products that are designated as being drinks could soon have to list hidden high in salt, sugar and fat. “liquid calories” The Government cited the fact that obesity is one of the Q New campaign to help people lose biggest health crises the country faces, with almost twoweight, get active and eat better thirds (63%) of adults in England overweight or living with after Covid-19 ‘wake-up call’ obesity and one-in-three children leaving primary school overweight or obese. The government says obesityrelated illnesses cost the NHS £6bn a year.

The measures have been unveiled now, says the The key measures include: government, because “the urgency of tackling the Q Banning unhealthy food ads – obesity time bomb has been brought to the fore new laws will ban the advertising of by evidence of the link to an increased risk from foods high in fat, sugar or salt (HFSS) Covid-19”. on TV and online before 9pm. Ahead of The package of measures is being launched this, the government will also hold a new alongside a new ‘Better Health’ campaign, led by short consultation on whether the ban Public Health England (PHE), which will call on people on online adverts for HFSS should to embrace a healthier lifestyle and to lose weight if apply at all times of day. they need to, supported by a range of evidenceQ Ending BOGOF based tools and apps providing advice on how promotions – to reduce the waistline. The campaign will new legislation HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE target adults as well as kids. will restrict SECRETARY MATT HANCOCK.

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NEWS SPECIAL

OBESITY STRATEGY HFSS FOOD PROMOTIONS AND MARKETING

the promotion of HFSS foods using promotions such as BOGOFs and there will also be a ban on these items being placed in prominent locations in stores, such as at checkouts and entrances, and online. Shops will be encouraged to promote healthier choices and offer more discounts on food like fruit and vegetables.

Q Front-of-pack nutritional labelling – a consultation will gather views and evidence on the current ‘traffic light’ labelling system to learn more about how this is being used by consumers and industry, compared to international examples.

Q Calorie labelling – new laws will require large restaurants, cafes and takeaways with more than 250 employees to add calorie labels to the food they sell.

Q Alcohol calorie labelling – a new consultation will be launched before the end of the year on plans to provide calorie labelling on alcohol.

Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said: “When you’re shopping for your family or out with friends, it’s only fair that you are given the right information about the food you’re eating to help people to make good decisions. To help support people we need to reduce unhelpful influences like promotions and adverts that affect what you buy and what you eat.”

ROSS FINNIE, CHAIR OF FOOD STANDARDS SCOTLAND, THE PUBLIC SECTOR FOOD BODY FOR SCOTLAND

THE SCOTTISH REACTION...

The Scottish Government announced in June that it was ‘pausing’ a new bill to put restrictions on HFSS food promotions as it focused its attentions on tackling coronavirus – but the new Obesity Strategy in England looks likely to ensure that it is followed by a similar set of initiatives in Scotland.

Ross Finnie, Chair of Food Standards Scotland, the public sector food body for Scotland, said: “Food Standards Scotland recognises that the tools to address obesity rest at both Holyrood and Westminster and so welcomes the announcement by the Westminster Government of its Healthier Lives Policy which will both complement and augment the Scottish measures designed to tackle the obesity crisis.

“We have long advocated restrictions on advertising of food and drink high in fat, salt and sugar. We welcome restrictions on promotions, not only in terms of volume, but also on price and we welcome the requirement for calorie labelling on Out of Home eating, but can see no logic in restricting the requirement to large operators.

“No single measure will solve the obesity problem that exists throughout the UK and it is important therefore that this huge problem is addressed in a coordinated way by both the Westminster and Devolved Administrations.”

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 11

ADVICE

DEALING WITH DIFFICULT CUSTOMERS RETAILTRUST

HOW TO DEAL WITH DIFFICULT CUSTOMERS THE LAST FEW MONTHS HAVE REINFORCED HOW IMPORTANT IT IS THAT RETAILERS HELP ENSURE THEIR STAFF ARE TRAINED IN DEALING WITH DIFFICULT CUSTOMERS. INDUSTRY CHARITY RETAILTRUST OFFERS SOME PRACTICAL ADVICE TO HELP MAINTAIN CONTROL IN CHALLENGING SITUATIONS.

W

e’ll no doubt all have times when we’re required to deal with an unhappy or aggressive customer. Although it can be unsettling, here are some things you can do to reduce the impact on your own wellbeing, and that of your colleagues and other customers.

Remember that your employer will have their own guidance, including specific policies and procedures on what to do if you’re confronted with an aggressive or otherwise difficult customer. In addition, these tips will help you to maintain control in challenging situations.

Q Remember that the customer is a human being with their own problems. It can be hard to remember this when someone is shouting at you, but it can help to consider the reasons for their anger. Perhaps they are experiencing other issues in their life at this particular time. For example, someone in their life may have recently died or their child could be seriously ill. Granted, a difficult life experience doesn’t excuse anyone to treat others badly but keeping other factors in mind may help you to reframe the situation.

Q Don’t take it personally. Always speak about the issue at hand and don’t get personal, even if the customer does. If

12 I SLRMAG.CO.UK / ISSUE 15 / WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020

a customer does use personal insults or offensive language during the interaction, it’s essential to ask that they refrain from repeating such language to avoid causing further offence. Remember that the customer doesn’t know you and is most likely misdirecting their frustration at you, instead of recognising that they are unhappy about an instore experience or product they’ve purchased.

Q Stay calm. Trying to argue with an angry person is like trying to push water uphill. If they are using offensive language or being verbally abusive, by all means, calmly remind them that their approach isn’t appreciated but don’t expect them to back down. In fact, responding in any tone other than one which is calm will only escalate the situation. Let the customer know that you are there to help them and that you want to help them.

Q Override the natural tendency to push back. When we feel defensive or vulnerable, we’re more likely to push back without thinking. Take some deep breaths and stay conscious of the control that you’re showing.

Q Empathise. It can often help to put yourself in the customer’s shoes. Echo the source of their frustration and show that you understand their position and situation. If you can empathise with a customer’s problem, it will help

ADVICE

DEALING WITH DIFFICULT CUSTOMERS RETAILTRUST

to rationalise the issue and potentially calm them down.

You don’t have to agree with their perception of their problem but you can let them know that you understand what they are complaining about.

Q Become conscious of your tone. If confronted by a customer who is speaking loudly, purposely respond in a lower tone and watch the pace of your speech. This is a conscious choice and will help them to settle down even if they’re unaware of it. It’s pretty difficult to continue shouting at someone who is replying in a calm and measured way.

Q Respond as if the world is watching. You might be in a one-on-one situation with a customer but pretending that the exchange is being recorded for the whole world to see can help you to step outside and maintain control.

It can also help to take the client to a quieter area of the store to avoid other customers becoming drawn into the

discussion. This is particularly important if it relates to issues about in-store experiences such as queues at till areas and stock availability.

Q Regardless of the outcome, let your line manager or supervisor know about the incident. This isn’t about covering your back but is to ensure that your manager or supervisor isn’t caught by surprise if he or she gets a phone call or email from the customer or head office at a later date. Be sure to detail the steps that you took and the resolution you offered.

Q Let off steam. We can’t just expect people who have been shouted at to walk away from the exchange and get on with their day. Ask your line manager or supervisor for time to step away from your duties so that you can go for a short walk, get a coffee or tea, take some deep breaths… whatever you need to do be able to return to the job as relaxed as possible and carry on with your day.

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 13

RETAIL CRIME

BODY CAMERAS ANTONY BEGLEY, EDITOR, SLR

RETAIL CRIME IN FOCUS AT CO-OP

O

IN THE LATEST MOVE TO COMBAT RISING RETAIL CRIME, THE CO-OP IS ROLLING OUT BODY-WORN CAMERAS TO STAFF, REPORTS ANTONY BEGLEY.

ne of the more unsavoury side-effects of the already unsavoury coronavirus pandemic has been a sharp rise in retail crime. It’s a tough one to swallow for retailers who have bent over backwards to support communities across the UK for the last few months – but it’s undeniable that retail crime has become more of a challenge than ever since lockdown began.

The latest dispiriting evidence of how much of a problem this is becoming is the roll out of body-worn cameras by the Co-op. The group announced last week that it is equipping front-line staff with body cameras to help keep them safer in the face of rising aggression against convenience store staff, marking something of a new low in the sector when retailers are required to go to such extremes simply to protect key workers doing their job and supporting their communities.

The retailer warns of a “crime and violence epidemic“ and says its targeted deployment of body cameras forms part of an ongoing commitment to invest a further £70m over the next three years in innovative technology to protect colleagues. These solutions include SmartWater Fog Cannons, the latest remote monitored iCCTV, body cameras and communication headsets for all frontline colleagues.

“The Co-op has seen store crime increase by more than 140% yearon-year, despite communities recognising the critical role played by key retail workers in society.”

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The new cameras will be used in around 250 stores initially, with the ability to activate real-time audio and visual with a single button push which is remotely monitored by the Security Operations Centre of Co-op security partner Mitie. Footage will then be used to identify criminals and provide evidence to secure prosecution.

The Co-op says it has seen store crime increase by more than 140% year-on-year, despite communities recognising the critical role played by key retail workers in society. The numbers of violent incidents also hit record levels with 1,350 attacks having been experienced by Co-op shop workers in the first six months of 2020.

As part of its Safer Colleagues, Safer Communities campaign, Co-op is also building awareness and support for MP Alex Norris’ ‘Assault on Shop Workers Bill’ which has now seen its second reading in Parliament postponed until September – the Bill states that because shop workers have responsibilities to uphold the law on age restricted products they should be afforded greater protection in carrying out those public duties.

RETAIL CRIME

BODY CAMERAS ANTONY BEGLEY, EDITOR, SLR

THREE ‘SHOCKING ATTACKS’ ON STAFF Central England Co-op has shared details in the last week of three shocking attacks on staff in an effort to make Government “do more” to protect shopworkers.

Thankfully, all three are recovering from their injuries and major investigations into the attacks have been launched by local police forces.

The retailer, which has over 260 stores, released details of the three appalling attacks – one which included a knife and another a wrench – in an effort to continue the conversation and to force change when it comes to offering more support for staff faced with threats and violence.

Craig Goldie, Loss Prevention Manager, commented: “These three incidents are truly shocking and showcase why the Government urgently needs to do more to better protect our frontline shop workers.

Stronger laws and punishments are needed for criminals who feel that it acceptable to target shop workers in these types of brutal and appalling ways.

The first incident, in Markfield, Leicester, saw a colleague verbally abused, physically attacked and then robbed while he lay injured on the floor in an unprovoked attack.

The second, which happened just last week in Barnsley, saw a criminal stab a colleague during a robbery at the store.

The third saw a colleague in Shepshed, Leicestershire, pushed, hit in the head and threatened with a wrench after asking a customer for ID while trying to buy an energy drink and then attempting to leave the store with a drink without paying.

Cheryl Houghton, Co-op Retail Security Manager, commented: “Shop workers play an essential role serving communities, yet they have to contend with unprecedented levels of violence and abuse on a daily basis. As a community retailer we see the impact of social issues in our stores. I have never seen such high levels of violence and abuse. It’s a societal issue that all retailers are concerned about and it’s

“While we continue to campaign for more to be done, we also want to send a message to would-be criminals. We have a zero tolerance approach to any kind of crime and, if you still want to commit a crime, we will work around the clock with local police forces to bring you to justice in an effort to keep our colleagues and customers safe.”

The retailer is encouraging customers and members to pledge their support for more Government action by signing an online petition set up by the Co-operative Party.

having lasting effects on the lives of shop workers – both mentally and physically.

“It is not part of the job to be verbally abused, threatened or attacked and we’re determined to make sure it isn’t, calling for greater protection for shop workers carrying out public duties, and for the root causes of crime in communities to be addressed.”

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RETAILER PROFILE

SCOTT GRAHAM MCLEISH’S, INVERURIE

HOW’S YOUR WEEK BEEN...

SCOTT GRAHAM? AS ONE OF THE MOST PROGRESSIVE RETAILERS IN THE BUSINESS, ABERDEENSHIRE RETAILER SCOTT GRAHAM DOESN’T LIKE LITTLE THINGS LIKE A GLOBAL PANDEMIC GET IN THE WAY OF A LONG OVERDUE MAJOR REFIT.

“On Sunday, after the refit, we were up 100% on a pre-Covid Sunday.”

HOW’S YOUR WEEK BEEN SCOTT? [Laughs out loud]. Eh, a wee bit hectic. We finished a full-scale refit at the tail end of last week and re-opened in time for the weekend, so it’s been mental.

YOU PICKED A FINE TIME FOR A REFIT THEN… Timing doesn’t appear to be my strong suit! When I first got this store about 11 years ago it was 2009 and the global banking system had just collapsed. And now

16 I SLRMAG.CO.UK / ISSUE 15 / WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020

I decided to do a major refit during the worst pandemic in living memory. Apparently I like a challenge.

HAD YOU BEEN PLANNING THE REFIT SINCE BEFORE CORONAVIRUS? Well, it’s complicated because the 10-year lease I had on the shop ran out last year and I took a while to decide whether I wanted to renew it. Because of that, we had stopped properly investing in the store for the last 18 months or so, but we finally got a deal sorted to renew

RETAILER PROFILE

SCOTT GRAHAM MCLEISH’S, INVERURIE

the lease and we knew that we had some catching up to do. We decided to stick with the McLeish’s name, rather than go with a fascia, and we renewed our deal with JW Filshill as they were the most proactive in supporting us. With a new 10year lease in place and a new supplier deal agreed we decided it was the right time to look at a full refit to incorporate a lot of the ideas and concepts I’d been picking up over the last few years during visits to other stores.

WHAT WAS THE ETHOS BEHIND THE REFIT? It actually started over a year ago when I did an interview with SLR for a cover story on ‘30 being the new 20’. The idea was that, with costs rising left, right and centre, retailers now had to be looking to make 30% margins and not the 20% that was industry standard at the time. I’d been thinking about that for months and months and I’d basically been collecting ideas that would let me grow margins in the store while also improving my offer to my customers.

AND WHY NOW? We had originally planned to do the refit over the Easter weekend but lockdown killed that plan stone dead. We decided now was a great time to do it because we were able to access a non-repayable coronavirus business grant and we’re also getting a year rates-free, so that combined lets us basically pay for the bulk of the refit.

HOW LONG DID IT TAKE? We spent a long time planning then finally swung into action a week ago on Sunday. We closed the store on the Sunday and reopened last Thursday.

The retailer in me was desperate to keep it open if possible, just to keep the money coming in, but we just couldn’t do it. The whole shop frontage was

replaced and we needed to close the store for that, so we decided to just bite the bullet and do it right.

DID YOU USE LOCAL TRADESPEOPLE? Yes, we’ve always been committed to supporting the local community as much as we can, so we used local joiners and electricians and so on. The new frontage was done by a local company too.

We did have to use Vertex for some specialist bits and pieces but a lot of it was done by local businesses and tradespeople.

SO, WHAT DID YOU CHANGE DURING THE REFIT? The whole frontage was redone, as I say. The old signage looked ok, but it was tired and bit worn.

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 17

RETAILER PROFILE

SCOTT GRAHAM MCLEISH’S, INVERURIE

We added much bigger entrance doors and a new entrance area. The whole idea was to make the store ‘pop’ when you passed it. One of the things that so many people have said to me is that the store already looked great, so why refit it? But for me, on a high street setting like this, the store has to really pop and stand out and I think we’ve achieved that. I’m really pleased with how it’s turned out. I think it looks fantastic.

AND INSIDE? Again, we were trying to make a store that really popped, and I was also keen to make sure that it was unique and didn’t look like any other store.

We’ve used a lot of old red brick and timber and I think it works really well. There were times during the fit-out last week when I thought to myself that it wasn’t coming together the way I had envisaged it, but once the signage guys came in and wrapped everything and put all the signage up it just pulled it all together and ended up just how I wanted it. I was as just as relieved as I was pleased!

HOW DID YOU IMPLEMENT YOUR ‘30 IS THE NEW 20’ STRATEGY INSTORE?

We did a lot of work analysing margins from every category in the store and that informed a lot of what we chose to do. Lower margin lines and categories were either de-prioritised or removed altogether to make room for better margin lines, but obviously lines that we still believed could deliver volumes. We added a lot of new higher margin products like F’Real and Skwishee, we’ve expanded the food-to-go section from 4m to 6m, we’ve upgraded our coffee machine and we’ve added a lot of new dessert options like waffles and scooping ice cream and so on. We’ve also added a frozen range for the first time ever.

HOW DID YOU FIT ALL THE NEW LINES IN? As part of the refit we decided after a lot of, shall I say, lively debate to change the shelving in the store from 500mm base to 300mm and that’s freed up a lot of space and let us add a fifth gondola. I was nervous about that too but it has really worked well and we get comments every day about how the store looks bigger, even though it’s actually the same four walls. We also moved the till point which helps make the store feel more spacious.

HAVE YOU PRIORITISED ANY OTHER CATEGORIES WITH THE NEW SPACE? We’ve added a lot more fresh and bakery, a lot of it from local producers. We’ve grown our soft drinks space from 2.5m to 4m, because we were always a bit cramped in that category, and we’ve grown our wine range significantly. We’re just reflecting the trends we’re seeing in sales and, obviously, focusing on higher margin lines.

GROCERY? Yes, that’s a bit of a weird one. We’ve spent years backing out of packaged grocery then coronavirus

18 I SLRMAG.CO.UK / ISSUE 15 / WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020

RETAILER PROFILE

SCOTT GRAHAM MCLEISH’S, INVERURIE

came along. When lockdown first kicked in I initially convinced myself that we should shut.

No school kids, no workies, no office staff, not passing trade. Thankfully, I couldn’t have been more wrong. But what did change dramatically was what people were buying. Impulse lines fell off a cliff but grocery suddenly went through the roof. I sold three tonnes of flour in six weeks at one point! I don’t think I’ve sold more than about half a dozen bags a flour a week in the 10 years before!

SO YOU’VE GIVEN IT SOME SPACE IN THE REFIT? We’ve allocated some space to it, yes, because people are still buying it. I don’t know what will happen in the longer term but the way we’ve done it we can easily start reducing the grocery space and switching it to something else as required, but for the time being my customers want it.

HOW HAVE SALES BEEN SINCE THE STORE OPENED AGAIN AT THE WEEKEND? Banging! We were probably about 40% above ‘normal’ sales levels during coronavirus but this weekend we were absolutely flying. I don’t know whether it’s just customers coming by for a look at the new store but on Sunday we were up 100% on a pre-Covid Sunday.

ARE THE NEW LINES CATCHING ON YET? Absolutely. The scooping ice cream was just crazy.

We went with a company called Stew and Drew from Lossiemouth, again just to keep it local and to have a product that no one else in Inverurie was selling and they were brilliant. I had never done ice cream before, so I had no idea what to do but they guided me through the process and

at the weekend it was a massive hit. It takes a little more time and effort to serve and I’ve been adding another member of staff to dedicate to it but it more than pays its way. Skwishee is also doing really well. It was slow on Friday for some reason but picked up in fine style on Saturday and Sunday. The rest of the store has been well shopped too, so it’s definitely so far so good. We have a few little things on the snagging list to do and I’m probably being a bit pernickity, but after all that effort I want it to be perfect! I reckon we’ll have it nailed by Friday.

HAS CORONAVIRUS BROUGHT THE INVERURIE COMMUNITY CLOSURE TOGETHER? You know what, I think it has. It’s been a tough few months for everyone but I see lots of evidence that the local community appreciates the fact that we’ve been there for them all the way through. It feels more like a true community store now than at any point in the last decade. That’s something we’re focusing on in everything we do know, even with simple little things. We always refer to it now as ‘Your New Store’ and I think the bond between the store and the community has been strengthened through the experiences of the last few months.

SOUNDS LIKE YOU’RE ENJOYING RETAIL LIFE? I really am, I’ve got the buzz back again. The last couple of years were tough what with difficult trading conditions and the negotiations with the lease, but it feels like it did back when I first got the store in 2009. It’s exciting and I’m enjoying it. It’s great to see all my ideas and plans brought to life in the store and it’s fulfilling to be able to provide a really valuable service to the local community – and to see that they appreciate it.

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 19

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WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 21

ILLICIT TOBACCO

NEW ONLINE ‘POSTCODE CALCULATOR‘ JTI

WANT TO KNOW HOW BAD THE ILLICIT TRADE IS IN YOUR POSTCODE? AS PART OF THE BATTLE AGAINST ILLICIT TOBACCO, JTI HAS LAUNCHED A NEW ‘POSTCODE

CALCULATOR’ TO ALLOW RETAILERS TO SEE JUST HOW THE ILLICIT TRADE AFFECTS THEIR COMMUNITY

A

AND LOCAL AREA.

ll local retailers know that they lose sales, footfall and profit to the illicit trade in tobacco and it’s a problem that affects every corner of the UK. Many retailers will have some idea of how bad the problem is in their area but a new online tool from JTI will help them establish exactly the scale of the illicit trade in their locality.

As an enhancement to its trade-facing website [link to www.jtiadvance.co.uk/DontBeComplicit], JTI has today launched a new ‘Postcode Calculator’ – a free-to-use online tool which enables retailers to find out how their local area is affected by illicit tobacco.

By simply entering a postcode area (e.g. SE, GL, WV), retailers will be able to find out how many seizures and/or

22 I SLRMAG.CO.UK / ISSUE 15 / WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020

NEW TODA Y!

prosecutions have taken place near that location since 2017, including estimates of the quantity and total value of illegal tobacco reported.

There is also the option to expand their search to cover the wider area (e.g. from LU Luton to East of England) to view the percentage of non-UK duty paid cigarettes and hand-rolling tobacco in their region compared to the UK average.

The new interactive feature has been added to JTI’s dedicated Don’t Be Complicit in Illicit microsite, which has also benefitted from a content update and fresh new look, and continues to play an important part in JTI’s fight against the illicit trade.

ILLICIT TOBACCO

NEW ONLINE ‘POSTCODE CALCULATOR‘ JTI

Ian Howell, UK Anti-Illicit Trade Manager at JTI, comments: “Illicit tobacco remains a serious problem and this new feature on our microsite is the latest development from JTI to support retailers in the fight against this issue.

Our hope is that this new tool will enable retailers to remain vigilant and raise awareness of the scale of the problem in their local area.

“As well as keeping retailers informed, we are also hopeful that it will help raise awareness of illicit trade and its effects on communities across the country. We also want to encourage retailers to report any suspected sellers in their area, through the anonymous reporting function on the microsite.”

Nisa retailer Girish Chavda said: “With the restrictions on overseas travel and pubs closed due to Covid-19, I’ve noticed a considerable uplift in my tobacco sales over the last few months. To me, this really highlights the scale of the illicit tobacco trade in my area and how much revenue retailers are potentially missing out on to criminals.

“I think this new tool by JTI is a brilliant idea, and I’d welcome any material that I can display in my shop that helps inform customers about the scale of the illicit tobacco trade in my area. There’s no doubt that more needs to be done to combat the illicit trade but it’s good to see manufacturers like JTI stepping up and doing something about it.”

Find it how bad the illicit trade is in your postcode on JTI’s Don’t Be Complicit microsite.

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 23

NOW THAT’S A GOOD IDEA…

OUT THE BOX FOOD WASTE MANAGEMENT

TACKLE FOOD WASTE WITH ‘MAGIC BAGS’

WE SPEAK TO PROGRESSIVE MUSSELBURGH RETAILER DAN BROWN TO HEAR HOW HE IS HELPING REDUCE FOOD WASTE AND DELIGHT CUSTOMERS BY PARTNERING WITH THE TOO GOOD TO GO APP TO OFFER SHOPPERS ‘MAGIC BAGS’ OF SHORT-CODED PRODUCTS AT A QUARTER OF THEIR ORIGINAL COST.

WHAT’S THE BIG IDEA, DAN? Too Good To Go is an app that helps reduce food waste by letting retailers sell short-coded stock or stock that is past its Best Before date in ‘magic bags’ at heavily discounted prices to a receptive audience. An astonishing one-third of all food produced is wasted.

HOW DOES IT WORK? Basically, we just agreed to partner with the app and then set the ‘rules’. We opted to agree to sell bags with a minimum normal sales value of £12 and then sell them at £4, a 75% saving to the customer.

IS IT NEW? No, we’ve been doing it since the end of last year, but coronavirus has seen a lot more people interested in reducing food waste. It’s easy to set up and it works really well. Typically we’ll sell maybe eight to 10 bags a day, but that fluctuates a lot depending upon stock levels and a variety of other factors.

24 I SLRMAG.CO.UK / ISSUE 15 / WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020

WAS IT DIFFICULT TO GENERATE INTEREST? Not at all. We were astonished at how quickly it picked up. That’s probably down to the fact that a lot of people already use the app, partly because Morrisons use it too, so there was an audience already there when we started. It took off literally overnight.

WHAT’S IN YOUR MAGIC BAGS? It’s different every day and often for every bag. We promise a minimum value of £12 at normal cost levels, which customers get for just £4. There’s lot of ways of using the app from a retailer’s point of view, but we use it as a way of managing waste in short shelf life categories like fresh and chilled. So we’ll include ready meals, meat, fruit and veg and so on. But we try to mix it up so the shoppers gets a useful bag. We wouldn’t give them £14 worth of carrots! But because we decide on what to include every day, we can choose what to include so we often also include things like sandwiches, pastries and food-to-go.

NOW THAT’S A GOOD IDEA…

OUT THE BOX FOOD WASTE MANAGEMENT

DOES IT WORK FOR YOU? Definitely. It reduces the amount of stock we waste, and it also minimises the amount of instore reduction pricing which doesn’t do the store image a lot of good if you’ve got a lot of it. Even at £4, if we sell 10 of them a day we’re getting £40 back when we might have got next to nothing by discounting it in the store, so that adds up to.

AND IT WORKS FOR CUSTOMERS? The popularity of the service speaks for itself.

Customers get delicious, perfectly edible food that would normally get thrown out at the end of the day – so they get to help do their bit for the planet while also getting some fantastic bargains at the same time.

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Visit the Too Good To Go website.

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 25

OPINION

ATMs JOHN LEE, HEAD OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, SGF

ACCESS TO CASH UNDER MAJOR THREAT WITH AROUND 5,400 ATMS STILL SHUT BECAUSE OF COVID-19, ACCESS TO CASH IS BECOMING A HUGELY IMPORTANT ISSUE FOR MANY COMMUNITIES, SAYS SGF’S JOHN LEE.

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ccording to data supplied by The Sunday Times, an astonishing 7,200 cash machines were shut down in April and May alone this year. Of those, some 5,400 are still shut, raising fears that many will never reopen.

This has resulted in a severe cash shortage in the UK, as many ATMs ran out of money or were simply switched off. According to The Sunday Times, people in dozens of communities were forced to travel

over three miles to access the nearest functioning cash machine.

Some of the ATMs were closed because operators were unable to get access to the safe behind the machines located on the exterior walls of business premises that had been forced to shut. This clearly exacerbated the problem, along with a mass switch to contactless and credit/debit payments.

This is a hugely important issue and SGF has been working directly with LINK on this. In its view, access

“Cash withdrawals have fallen by 60% but 23% of people are still using the same or more cash and around £1bn is still being taken out of ATMS each week.”

26 I SLRMAG.CO.UK / ISSUE 15 / WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020

OPINION

ATMs JOHN LEE, HEAD OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, SGF

to cash remains vital to millions of consumers but the decline in volumes is putting many ATMs under pressure. Convenience stores are an especially important location for ATMs and LINK is working hard to maintain that network and to reopen any ATM that has closed because of the Covid crisis.

It is true that, during the pandemic, cash withdrawals have fallen by 60%, but 23% of people are still using the same or more cash and around £1bn is still being taken out of ATMs each week.

Before the crisis, 76% of transactions in c-stores were still being processed in cash. Indeed cash is an integral part not only of the business model in convenience – customers on a budget will almost always prefer to use cash and an impulse purchase will probably be paid for in cash – but also of the wider services a convenience store offers.

Some time ago, working with payment service providers, we uncovered the fact that at least £175m in rent and council tax payments are made each year in convenience stores in Scotland alone. Much of this is paid in cash. This is quite a remarkable figure and is undoubtedly invaluable not only in ensuring people can pay these bills but also in ensuring money flows towards local authorities and housing associations.

The loss of free ATMs, and the closure of bank and building society branches, will continue to hurt the most rural and poorest communities in the UK. The most deprived communities (the main victims of the war on cash) saw the smallest declines in cash withdrawals, with the biggest drops occurring in city centres like Glasgow, where withdrawals fell by 80%. Quite simply, digital payments do not work for everyone and we must maintain a cash infrastructure to stop millions from being left behind. As Hugh Grant once sang: “Don’t write cash off just yet!”

WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 15 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 27

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