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Industry News
IndustryNews
A DIGEST OF NEWS FROM THE INDEPENDENT RETAILING INDUSTRY
Christchurch Premier store claims Retailer of the Year Award
A family run Premier store in Christchurch in Dorset has been named Retailer of the Year by The Daily Echo newspaper.
A Premier Store on The Grove in Christchurch, near Bournemouth, has been named as the winner of The Daily Echo newspaper’s Retailer of the Year award.
The store is run by the Gunduz family who bought the store 11 years ago and has been praised by the local community as the “champion’s league of shops” after supporting elderly residents and young families in the area during the pandemic.
When the fi rst lockdown started, the family chose to focus on supporting their local community in whatever way they could.
Huseyin, the eldest brother, said: “During the lockdown we were pushed to the limits and one of our fundamentals during that time was that the prices of the items were selling would not change, lockdown or no lockdown.
“At the height of the pandemic, business was not the number one priority. It was about providing value for money because, due to people being on furlough, everyone was feeling the squeeze.”
The store helped to source specifi c items for customers, as well as launching a delivery service, free of charge, to shoppers who were forced to isolate.
Huseyin added: “We had to be especially warm and welcoming to our shopper because for some of them, we might have been the fi rst person or the only person they might see all day.”
Essential spending ‘up 11.1% in 2021’
The latest data from Barclaycard, which sees nearly half of the nation’s credit and debit card transactions, has revealed that spending on ‘essential’ items like food and drink rose 11.1% in 2021.
Consumer spending in total increased 5.9% in 2021 compared to 2019, fuelled by growing demand for convenience.
Online food and drink spend also continued to grow substantially, peaking in March as it rose 119.7% as many households continued to rely on home deliveries for food shopping.
Jose Carvalho, Head of Consumer Products at Barclaycard, said: “2021 was another challenging year. However, categories such as local food retailers, continued to do well, thanks to demand for convenient, local, and athome shopping experiences. Local shops continue to be supported by communityspirited shoppers.”
INBRIEF
YOUNGER SHOPPERS EMBRACE DATA
A new report from data and digital experts TWC has revealed that two thirds of 18-34 year old shoppers are “happy for retailers to collect data about their spending and purchasing habits if they personalise offers better in return”.
The TWC Savvy Shopping report also highlights how almost half of younger shoppers are struggling to make ends meet fi nancially and are therefore more likely to be seeking out deals or shopping in better value stores.
Overall, 35% of shoppers claim to be opting for better value stores to save money on groceries, whilst the same proportion are hunting around for the best deals on everyday food items. Deal hunting was highest for Millennials at 40%.
Sarah Coleman, Communications Director at TWC comments: “Given that younger shoppers are more likely to be struggling fi nancially and are also more likely to be hunting for deals, surely there is an opportunity to create a loyalty proposition that resonates with these shoppers. Understanding the purchasing behaviour of these shoppers is critical but their loyalty is not likely to be easily won, so there must be clear benefi ts for participating.”
IndustryNews
A DIGEST OF NEWS FROM THE INDEPENDENT RETAILING INDUSTRY
Peers agree protection of workers amendment
House of Lords passes an important amendment that will add further protection for workers in independent convenience stores.
The House of Lords has passed a new protection of workers amendment to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill in the House of Lords. The amendment places in statute the aggravating factor applied by the courts in cases of assault where an off ence is committed against those providing a public service, performing a public duty or providing a service to the public.
The Government says it will reinforce in statute the seriousness with which the courts should treat these off ences and send a very strong signal to the public that assaults of this kind are totally unacceptable. The new measure will be reviewed in 12 months.
ACS Chief Executive, James Lowman, said: “After many years of campaigning we are please the government has introduced tougher penalties for attacks on shopworkers. This sends a muchneeded signal to our colleagues that violence and abuse will not be tolerated.
“We still need more resources for police forces to focus on neighbourhood policing and delivery of the drug rehabilitation strategy to reduce acquisitive crime that often leads to violence in local shops.”
Home entertaining now ‘key’ for retailers
A new report has found that entertaining at home is a fundamentally important legacy of the last 18 months. A TWC survey in the run up to Christmas found that almost seven in 10 shoppers said they had entertained friends at home in the past month and/or plan to do so in the next month. This is a higher number than those that said they had met friends and family in a pub, and implies a signifi cant opportunity for retailers.
Sarah Coleman, TWC’s Director of Communications, said: “Retailers have an opportunity to target home entertaining occasions, to meet the needs of those that don’t want to go out, or indeed those who have enjoyed entertaining at home through the pandemic and wish to continue. If current concerns lead to further restrictions, retailers need to be prepared for an increase in at-home occasions.”
The report also suggested that home delivery can play an important role in helping retailers service shoppers entertaining at home, as well as allowing retailers to get closer to shoppers and understand their buying behaviours better through data collection and analysis.
INBRIEF
WOMEN’S NETWORK LAUNCHED
The Association of Convenience Stores has launched a new group that aims to act as a support network for women running independent convenience stores.
The group was formed to provide women with a space to connect with each other and share their experiences and perspectives.
ACS will facilitate quarterly meetings for the group, featuring guest speakers and workshops where the group will explore a range of topics, including public speaking, confi dence, and how to use
social media.
Julie Duhra of Premier Jules Convenience, a member of the new network, said: “I am proud to be an independent retailer of 30 years, today I am learning from another retailer how to get to do wine courses and grow sales with your expertise - knowledge is key.”
