Curry's. - Do NOT buy anything from them at the moment.

[doctor Bob]

Of course the big question is "how come those triple boxes don't last 3 times as long", I think it's because as you eat a Jaffa cake some phenomenuon happens to time and it goes exponential.

 

[Blackswanwood]

Another big question is whether you can tell the difference when it’s not McVities?

 

[Rorschach]

Another big question is whether you can tell the difference when it’s not McVities?

Back when I ran a shop (and would eat a packet of jaffa cakes in a say I am shamed to say) I did a blind taste test with the staff, we compared Tesco value to McVities. Everyone preferred the Tesco value. Most of them said that they could tell which were the Mcvities from the look of them, but still preferred the taste of the value.

 

[doctor Bob]

Another big question is whether you can tell the difference when it’s not McVities?

Rubbish taste buds, so it's a no from me.

 

[Droogs]

i'm not sure. i think the missus puts tesco's ones in the mcvitee box as they always have the sell by date missing

 

[artie]

I was gobsmacked while waiting at the till in Currys, The woman in front of me paid a fiver for an extended warranty on a £17 kettle.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I've got odds that Roger thinks Jaffa cakes aren't biscuits

Quite rightly. They are cakes.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Of course the big question is "how come those triple boxes don't last 3 times as long", I think it's because as you eat a Jaffa cake some phenomenuon happens to time and it goes exponential.

My lad liked them so my wife bought a bargain box of something like thirty packs for a tenner. He then decided he didn't like them any more.

 

[guineafowl21]

I was gobsmacked while waiting at the till in Currys, The woman in front of me paid a fiver for an extended warranty on a £17 kettle.

Simpson’s joke:
Homer gets a crayon removed from his brain, lodged in there since childhood, and becomes super-intelligent. He doesn’t like it, so asks Moe to put it back so he can become blissfully dim again.

Moe taps the crayon in a little way.
Homer: ‘Deeper, you pusillanimous pilsner-pusher!’

*Tap, tap*

Homer: ‘DE-fence, uh, uh, DE-fence, uh, uh’ (redneck football fan)
Moe: ‘Hmmm, that’s pretty dumb, but maybe a little further.’

*Tap, tap*

Homer: ‘Extended warranty? How can I lose?!’
Moe: ‘There, that’s dumb enough!’

 

[lurker]

Aldi Jaffa cakes are by far the best.

 

[Lons]

Rorschach said:
I've got odds that Roger thinks Jaffa cakes aren't biscuits

Quite rightly. They are cakes.

Absolutely Phil.
Must have been a shopkeeper who suggested they aren't

 

[Rorschach]

You missed the joke but it's ok

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Easily missed.

 

[Oddbod]

I was gobsmacked while waiting at the till in Currys, The woman in front of me paid a fiver for an extended warranty on a £17 kettle.

Proof that you can't fix stupid.

I rarely use the big stores any more.
I check prices online, then email/message local stockists with the online price(including delivery cost, if any), asking if they can get close.
Doing this, I've actually saved compared to the online price on multiple appliances over the past 10 years, including fitting out two homes with Neff, AEG, Smeg, Miele, Bosch...
Pity many people don't bother to do this, as keeping the local economy vibrant is good for the local community too.

 

[Nigel Burden]

We use one of the local stores for white goods and they always price match the big stores, and it's generally a nicer shopping experience, if there is such a thing.

Nigel.

 

[Terry - Somerset]

Shopping for consumer durables - TVs, cookers, fidges etc - I would like to:

1. talk to a member of staff who is knowledgable about the product
2. inspect what I am buying
3. pay a low price
4. get delivery when I want/need/am promised.

It is not viable to run a network of stores with staff and displays and expect them to deliver on (1) and (3) as well.

Currys seem to do (2) with some limited success. (1) and (2) rarely. And, at the moment (4) seems to be unusual.

Something needs to give. Personally I will pay a little extra to shop at (say) John Lewis for their knowledgable and courteous staff.

It is somewhat lacking in integrity to get the "free" advice and shop elsewhere to save a few ££. It is also unsustainable - very soon the advice and knowledge taken for granted will disappear to be replaced by feedback from "happy" Amazon customers and fraudulent reviews.

 

[Blackswanwood]

Shopping for consumer durables - TVs, cookers, fidges etc - I would like to:

1. talk to a member of staff who is knowledgable about the product
2. inspect what I am buying
3. pay a low price
4. get delivery when I want/need/am promised.

It is not viable to run a network of stores with staff and displays and expect them to deliver on (1) and (3) as well.

Currys seem to do (2) with some limited success. (1) and (2) rarely. And, at the moment (4) seems to be unusual.

Something needs to give. Personally I will pay a little extra to shop at (say) John Lewis for their knowledgable and courteous staff.

It is somewhat lacking in integrity to get the "free" advice and shop elsewhere to save a few ££. It is also unsustainable - very soon the advice and knowledge taken for granted will disappear to be replaced by feedback from "happy" Amazon customers and fraudulent reviews.

Surely 1 and 3 are achievable Terry as evidenced by John Lewis? They may be dropping the “never knowingly undersold” tag line but certainly price match both when asked and when they are aware of a competitor price? I’m sure John Lewis are not immune to employing the odd muppet but their ethos towards their people and brand imho pays off.

On 4 there is little retailers can do at the moment about stock availability but the OP suggests they are not being transparent about it. My guess is that this is driven by an anxiousness to drive revenue but hasn’t been thought through in terms of long term customer trust.

I agree that taking advice and then buying elsewhere is shaping the retail sector and high street. C19 has in my view just accelerated the impact of these challenges for retailers.

 

[doctor Bob]

Companies need to stop price matching on appliances.
We used a local company for many years, probably £50-£75K a year of business. In the end they went bust. Talking to the owner he acknowledged that price matching had killed the business. Often selling stuff at a loss. He said how can I price match against AO when what we sell is a day or less sales for them

 

[AJB Temple]

I don't see how they can stop Bob. It has become habitual for all of us to check prices, specs, videos and reviews on line. With next day delivery frequently available, the brick and mortar stores are not viable. I can't ever see it going back. Consumers protect themselves via credit card and PayPal, which provides some insulation against late delivery or other problems.

I think John Lewis will contract sharply. It is interesting that their profitable arm, Waitrose, has linked up for a trial with Deliveroo. Amazon are heavily invested in Deliveroo. So they clearly understand that on-line is very much the present as well as their future.

Invest in delivery networks!

 

[Droogs]

I believe the situation the high street finds itself in is the direct ultimate end state of capitalist consumerism, nothing else matters but price. Every generation since the end of WW2 has been bombarded with this most central tenet of consumerism. Hence the continuous decline in the build quality and longevity of the things we have. After all consumerism doesn't work if there is no need to replace what you have. So built in obsolescence has become the norm meaning ever cheaper parts and production methods that favour the mass producer and consequently the wholesaler at the expense of the little guy both in manufacture and retail.

After all would you rather have a Wadkin Burgessgreen or a Charnwood?