14 minute read
NEWS
NEWS Finding staff proving to be major headache for retailers
By Greg Pitcher
The fine food sector has faced major recruitment challenges in an ultracompetitive jobs market during the run up to Christmas.
Several specialists described the difficulties they had faced staffing up for the festive period.
A poll of 400 job agencies for the KPMG and Recruitment & Employment Confederation found that candidate supply had plummeted in the UK in October as people became reluctant to switch roles amid economic uncertainty.
Yet big retailers launched massive hiring drives with Sainsbury’s seeking 18,000 seasonal staff and Aldi hunting for 3,000 festive workers. The discount supermarket also pledged to pay store assistants £11 per hour nationwide from 1st January.
Steven Salamon, owner of Wally’s Delicatessen in Cardiff, said he had managed to find the staff to keep his café open this Christmas, having been forced to close it last festive season.
But he added that he had not quite managed to hit his target employee numbers this November.
“If you ask people for a trial shift, every other person does not come – it just shows how competitive the jobs market is,” he said. “If it’s a Tuesday and I say come in for a trial shift on Friday, that candidate may have walked in somewhere else in that time and been offered a job.
“If you get a good one you have to make a snap decision. If you get a gutfeel, take them on.”
Rob Copley, director at Farmer Copleys in West Yorkshire, said he had “never known times like it”.
“We have been advertising a nice office administrator role on good pay, have twice offered someone the job and they didn’t start,” he said. “I think Covid has made people put their lives above their work. They want every Thursday afternoon off, every other Tuesday morning. You need two people for one job.”
Albion Farm Shop and Café took to social media to appeal for more “courtesy” from jobseekers.
The Greater Manchester business posted: “We want to say how sorry we are feeling for our shop manager Martha right now. We have had a number of people who agree to inductions and don’t turn up, and even agree to starting work then don’t turn up, and unfortunately don’t even have the courtesy to let her know or reply to her messages.
“Please bear in mind how draining this can be when you are trying to organise staff and think you have a position sorted.”
Delis and farm shops across the UK are having more difficulties than ever hiring and retaining staff
Coffey is made Defra secretary
Therese Coffey became the UK’s third food secretary in seven weeks after Rishi Sunak took office as the country’s third Prime Minister in the same period.
Coffey previously spent three years in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs from 2016, then spent three years as work and pensions secretary under Boris Johnson before briefly serving as Truss’s health secretary.
Ranil Jayawardena was food secretary under Truss while George Eustice served for two years before him.
Andrew Goodacre, chief executive of the British Independent Retailers Association, bemoaned the “revolving door of ministers” in recent months.
“We now need certainty that people will remain in place at least until the next general election,” he said. Given her reputation as an effective secretary of state, he said, “all we want is a commitment and determination to make the sector better for those who work in it.
“We need the relevant ministers to fight our corner on key issues such as the increasing cost burden. I would like to see Ms Coffey engage with us, listen to us and work with us on our shared objectives.”
DRS to allow more retailer exemptions than planned
Small retailers in Scotland will be able to opt out of the Deposit Return Scheme under new guidance issued by Holyrood last month.
The legislation is due to come into force in August 2023, with the aim of improving the country’s recycling system. Essentially, it will impose a levy on all drinks sold to be reimbursed upon return of its receptacle.
The clarifications made last month have simplified what was until recently seen as a costly, complex system for both the drinks industry and consumers.
The revised measures include the guarantee of return point mapping for retailers to identify other businesses offering a return scheme and an exemption support service.
Retailers and other businesses selling drinks will now need to submit less evidence than originally set out to qualify for an exemption, and the size of their outlet will be factored into the final decision.
Packaging and environmental data firm Ecoveritas welcomed the updated guidance, with Global EPR director Andrew McCaffery calling it “a triumph for common sense and another step towards a workable solution”.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING ABOUT... RECRUITING IN THE CURRENT MARKET
ANDREW GOODACRE, BRITISH INDEPENDENT RETAILERS ASSOCIATION
“I have never known it to be as hard to recruit and retain people. Indies have to rely on their flexibility and locality, and we need to improve the perception of working in retail, highlight career development and make the apprenticeship scheme work better.”
“Some employers offer higher rates of pay, discount schemes, free training – I would love to offer those but it is tough. There are things firms can do to make themselves attractive: you can get to know candidates and understand exactly what would they want.”
“You can’t compete on money, you have to give people somewhere they want to work. We have high staff retention because the guys have variety, serving cheese one minute, learning about wine the next. We need to attract foodies who want to learn. The right people are out there if you hang fire and don’t throw money at the wrong ones.”
DANIEL WILLIAMS, GODFREY C WILLIAMS & SON
SANGITA TRYNER, DELILAH FINE FOODS
NEWS Delis and farm shops unfazed by Waitrose revamp of “free coffee”
By Greg Pitcher
Independent food retailers were defiant this month as Waitrose returned to offering free coffee to customers.
Key industry figures insisted they would continue with their existing strategies despite the upmarket grocery chain bringing back complimentary hot drinks for loyalty card holders.
Waitrose ditched the popular offer in the early months of the pandemic but has now reintroduced it for myWaitrose members making an in-store purchase and bringing their own cup.
Simon Holland, partner at Washingpool Farm Shop & Restaurant, said the Dorset business was not trying to compete with the supermarket.
“The local Waitrose to us is on the high street in Bridport and its coffee is more of a grab-and-go,” he said. “We are a destination, a different market, different clientèle – people come to meet friends and family.
“We have dads who go round on a Saturday morning, first to the butcher then to us for the veg and meet the wife for a coffee.”
Daniel Williams, project manager at Godfrey C. Williams and Son, said the Cheshire deli was not “affected too much” by Waitrose’s drinks offer, despite being within 200 metres of a branch of the chain.
“We don’t sell cups of coffee so there is little direct effect and I don’t see it pulling too many of our customers.” he said.
“People come to us at this time of year for Christmas cheeses, hampers, roasted coffee … I don’t think they would choose to do their Christmas shopping based on a free cup of coffee. With the cost-of-living crisis, people will choose based on value for money and quality of service. I am not worried.”
Jennie Allen, who recently opened an outlet of her Bayley and Sage deli brand just a minute’s walk from a Waitrose store on Marylebone High Street, said the supermarket’s latest coffee offer was an “irrelevance” to her.
Waitrose has partnered with Caffè Nero for its latest offer. The complimentary coffee is made with beans certified by the Rainforest Alliance and tea is also available. All 331 ‘core’ Waitrose stores will run the scheme, but not concessions in garages or service stations.
Meanwhile, the supermarket said an IT upgrade had been paused. A spokesperson added: “The system improvements we’re making will lead to even better service for our customers. Waitrose product availability for the week ending 29 October was 94.3 per cent, an increase on last year.”
The supermarket chain has reintroduced complimentary hot drinks for loyalty card holders across its stores
IN BRIEF
Artisan confectionary brand Fudge Kitchen has given its workers equal equities in the business through an employee ownership trust (EOT), a model used by one in every 20 private companies in the UK.
The Cotswold Meat
Company has bought Slatters Butchers in Chadlington, Oxfordshire. The wholesaler’s new owner, Nick Passmore, said it was “a natural next step” within its investment and growth plans.
Petrossian is set to open a caviar café and deli in South Kensington this month, selling the eggs and all the accoutrements, offering up dishes like croque caviar, foie gras and smoked fish platters.
Planet Organic plans rapid expansion across the UK
13-strong health food store group Planet Organic wants to expand its UK footprint to reach 50 stores over the next three years, and 20 within the next twelve months.
Led by newlyappointed CEO, George Dymond, it recently hit a £6.25m crowdfunding target to further the plans, out of the £10m projected to do so.
Since Dymond (formerly MD of Holland & Barrett’s international operations) came into the role last year, the company has made efforts to return the store to profitability. Its losses grew from £2.5m in 2020 to £3.4m in 2021.
The drop was said to be down to challenges caused by the pandemic – store closures, supply chain issues – and the company’s acquisition of natural food store chain, As Nature Intended.
Measures to turn the tide have included the closure of three loss-making stores and the launch of a new centralised model with a new distribution centre in Sunbury-on-Thames, to drive efficiencies in its supply chain.
The new stores mark the next step in the plans, to, as stated by the directors, “acquire sites in attractive locations at attractive rents” as the high streets adapt to current economic conditions.
How indies can combat the supermarkets’ loyalty scheme upgrades and vouchers
Experts are urging independent retailers to focus on strengthening relationships with customers as supermarkets look to buy loyalty through discount schemes.
As well as myWaitrose members receiving free coffee, Morrisons has launched offers exclusively to its own My Morrisons cohort, and Tesco has promised customers a bonus voucher of up to £12 when they save their Clubcard Vouchers towards their Christmas shop.
Dr Amna Khan, senior lecturer in consumer behaviour and retailing at Manchester Metropolitan University, said the cost-ofliving crisis had heightened shoppers’ search for value.
“Loyalty offers provide assurance for the consumer and help to build an emotional connection as consumers see retailers as supporting them through hardship,” she said.
“Independent retailers may not be able to compete on price due to rising business cost and lower margins. They should focus on building communities and relationships with consumers that offer the customer a sense of belonging.”
Bryan Roberts, global insight leader at retail data firm IGD, said the big firms were keen to drive usage of their loyalty schemes for three reasons.
“Firstly, the rich data and insights that come from loyalty cards or apps can enable better decisionmaking in areas such as ranging, merchandising and promotions,” he said. “Secondly, that data and insight can be sold to suppliers.
“Thirdly, major retailers are repositioning themselves as media owners: with stores, digital screens, websites, apps, loyalty cards and emails, they can influence shoppers all along the path to purchase. Selling this type of service to major brands will create a very important source of revenue and profitability in the future.”
NEWS No pleasant surprises for retail in Hunt’s gloomy Autumn Budget
By Tanwen Dawn-Hiscox
Independent retailers are coming to grips with the UK’s ‘bleak’ economic landscape following the Government’s announcement of the Autumn budget, an austere £55bn ‘consolidation plan’ focused on filling what it has called a “fiscal black hole”.
Six weeks after departed Prime Minister Liz Truss’ chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng laid out plans to radically cut taxes and increase public spending, the new Government is taking a different tack, aiming to raise £24bn in taxes while squeezing public spending by £30bn.
Confirming that the UK economy has indeed entered a recession, the chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt said the plan would focus on“stability, growth and public services”, and as a result the recession would be shallower, inflation (which recently hit a 41-year-high of 11.1%) would be reduced, and unemployment would be kept low.
Measures to stimulate growth include a rise of the national living wage by 9.7% next year to £10.42 an hour, and a £13.6bn business rate package including a rate reduction from 50 to 75% next year for retail, hospitality and leisure - and transitional relief to cap bills.
The leader of the British Independent Retailers’ Association, Andrew Goodacre, said the business rates relief was “welcome news”, and a “positive step to support the high street.”
However, he added, “we would like to have seen more done to encourage spending, especially in the run up to Christmas.
“For small independents, particularly in our sector, there’s no getting around it, it’s pretty bleak,” said Rupert Evans, owner of the Denstone Hall farm shop
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s focus was on tax hikes and service cuts
and chairman of the Farm Retail Association (FRA).
The main contributor would be the living wage rise, which will represent a 10% increase for the lowest paid, but, he said, “will drive everybody’s wages up.”
“Somehow we’ve got to withstand a 10% increase on wages across our whole labour force,” as well as corporation tax rises, “another hit on our businesses”, alongside rising energy costs and squeezed margins.
For Patricia Michelson, owner and founder of La Fromagerie, little of what was laid out in the budget came as a surprise.
“All the benefits from the past few years had to be repaid somehow, we can’t just write it off,” she said.
“We’re all worried and gloomy about things but at least now that things have been said by the Government, we can start moving forward.”
“The budget’s been done, and now we budget accordingly.”
As the leader of the FRA, Evans said it was more important than ever for businesses to stick together and share ideas, and that, as an industry, “we’re really lucky. We’re not selling sofas or carpets, which are discretionary, we’re selling food - and everybody has to eat.”
Footfall, he said, has remained constant, and though average basket spends have gone down, shoppers remain loyal.
“I know it’s going to be tough times, people are going to be struggling, but we know that our customers valued us massively through lockdown and once again we’re going to be here to provide for them.”
“If you’ve been in business for 15 years, you’ve seen a few ups and downs. You’ve got to ride it, you’ve got to find a way to get through it, and there’ll be good times ahead I’m sure.”
SIAL Paris celebrates return after four-year hiatus
International food and drink conference SIAL Paris returned this year after a four year hiatus, welcoming 7,000 exhibitors from 127 countries at the Villepinte Nord site between 15-19th October.
The most prevalent countries exhibiting at the show were Italy, France, Spain, Turkey and Greece. The UK had just over 140 stands.
In keeping with this year’s theme, ‘Own the Change’, the conference was host to Innovation awards, celebrating progress in the world of food and drink, namely focusing on sustainability. Among them was gold winner ZALG, who makes seaweed cubes for pan-frying; the silver award went to a frozen Wolffia (a high-protein aquatic vegetable) from Thailand; and the bronze to an Argentinian yerba mate kit.
SIAL Network’s general director said this year’s event testified to the agrifood industry’s resilience and “incredible capacity to face enormous challenges: namely, to feed 10 billion human beings by 2050 in an ethical way while protecting the planet.”
The next SIAL Paris is already in the pipeline, and will take place on October 19th-24th 2024.
sialparis.com
DOWN ON THE FARM
The latest from farm shops across the country
A pop-up farm shop has recently opened at West End Farm in Bishops Cannings, near Devizes. Housed in a substantial woodenclad cabin, The Piggery is the first step towards a permanent shop where the Naughton family sell their outdoor bred pork from their pigs, grass-fed lamb and free-range chickens. The shelves are also stocked with locally sourced fresh vegetables, cakes, bread, jams and cheeses.
Open Thursday to Monday.
facebook.com/profile. php? id=100084293959339
The High Street in Ipstones, Staffordshire, has a new farm shop in the former butcher’s unit. The Gibsons, who farm at Sprinks Farm in Horton, will offer local fruit and vegetables, baked goods, cheeses and meat from their own farm. Quality is their focus as well as reducing food miles wherever possible. Sprinks Farm Shop is open Tuesday to Saturday.
sprinks-farm.co.uk/farmshop/
Also in Staffordshire is a brand-new tea shop which has opened alongside
The Four Shires Farm
Shop. Currently open Wednesday to Saturday
offering tea, coffee and cake, the space has been designed with meet-ups in mind.
facebook.com/ thefourshiresfarmshop
