Soult's Retail View

UGO store, Eston (4 May 2011)

The 20-strong chain of UGO supermarkets is to be snapped up by “a well-known and established brand name”, I understand.

Subject to legals being completed within the next couple of days, all the stores traded by UGO Stores Limited will transfer into the ownership of a new – and as yet unnamed – operator. All store staff will transfer under TUPE to the … Continue Reading

Trinity Square, Gateshead (18 Dec 2011)

It may have taken over a year to get started following the Get Carter car park’s demolition, but building work at Gateshead’s Trinity Square is now proceeding apace.

Construction of the £150m development only … Continue Reading

Closing-down poster at Newgate Street Co-op, Newcastle (2 Dec 2011)

Newcastle city centre’s Co-op supermarket is to close down this month, bringing to an end nearly a century-and-a-half of Co-operative presence in Newgate Street. Posters in the windows and instore – which I spotted while passing by yesterday – reveal that the store will ‘cease trading as a Co-operative’ at 6pm on New Year’s Eve (31 … Continue Reading

Tindale & Stanton logo

A family-run bakery and supermarket supplier based in County Durham has been saved from closure.

Bakery Products Limited has acquired the assets and goodwill of Hobson Foods Limited (in administration), which traded as Tindale & Stanton. The new business will continue to trade as Tindale & Stanton Limited from its existing premises in Burnopfield, near Gateshead. Bakery Products already owns the Woodhead Bakery in Scarborough, which it … Continue Reading

Soon-to-be Heron Foods, Wallsend (15 Nov 2011)

After much speculation, family-owned frozen food specialist Heron Foods has revealed itself as the new occupant of Wallsend’s former Woolworths store.

Following my visit two months ago, I reported that the property at 2-4 High Street East – vacant since the … Continue Reading

Sainsbury's Local (formerly Woolworths), Hessle Road, Hull (11 Oct 2011)

While tearing around Barnsley and Hull visiting UGO supermarkets last month, I was pleased to be able to work in an unexpected ex-Woolworths. Not knowing Hull very well at all beforehand, … Continue Reading

Signage at UGO Lundwood (11 Oct 2011)

The emergence of UGO as Britain’s newest discount supermarket chain has been one of the most interesting retail launches of 2011 so far.

Back in January, I reported on Asda’s OFT-instigated divestment of 47 Netto stores, and the news that Haldanes would be … Continue Reading

Tesco in Eger, Hungary (15 Jul 2006)

Today’s release of fairly weak UK trading figures from Tesco – where like-for-like sales, excluding petrol and VAT, fell by 0.5% in the first half of the year – has unsurprisingly prompted much media discussion, both about Tesco specifically and the state of the … Continue Reading

Point-of-sale promotion of the Asda Price Guarantee

Judging from the number of hits – currently 900+, and rising – many of you enjoyed my recent illustrated post about Asda’s Old Fold Road store in Gateshead, following its impressive transformation from a Netto.

While the increase in product lines and instore services … Continue Reading

Waitrose Jesmond... in Grimsby (23 Aug 2011)

Map blooper stories are always good value, whether it’s because they’ve erased Wales or located Shrewsbury in the middle of a river. Now, potential John Lewis Partners in Lincolnshire may be disappointed to find that Waitrose is not, in fact, about to … Continue Reading

Interior of Asda Supermarket, Gateshead (8 Aug 2011)

While some communities on Tyneside – among them North Shields and Wallsend – still have to wait a little longer for their Netto … Continue Reading

Notice at Netto North Shields (8 Aug 2011)

I paid my first visit to an ex-Netto Asda Supermarket last weekend – more of which in the coming days – but meanwhile the process of converting 147 Netto sites by the end of November continues apace.

North Shields is … Continue Reading

Promotion for Tamworth's new Morrisons (17 Jun 2011)

With a visit to an ex-Netto UGO in the bag, and one to an ex-Netto Asda in the offing, it seemed only fair to check … Continue Reading

UGO offers leaflet

Interview headlines:

• UGO stores need to “trade better” but are not “at danger level”
• IT and ordering issues will be addressed
• More UGO stores planned – new Leeds store “in negotiations”
• Own-brand bakery products to be stocked at UGO imminently
• Admits that “full weekly shop” idea was a mistake – “fine-tuning” required on product and price
• Main plan now is to “bed down” UGO

The first part of my interview with Arthur … Continue Reading

Arthur Harris, Haldanes CEO

Interview headlines:

• Three Haldanes stores could still be saved
• Harris pledges to carry on his legal action against the Co-op
• Blames collapse on Co-op’s alleged failure “to come to the table”, but admits some “mistakes” with Haldanes
• Haldanes estate was losing £100,000 a week
• Uplift in trade at ex-Haldanes stores converted to UGO – more would have followed

As boss of the collapsed Haldanes supermarket chain, which finally … Continue Reading

Netto, Birtley (24 Jan 2011)

The Co-operative Group has announced today that it is to acquire the Netto store in Birtley, Gateshead – one of the six remaining sites that Asda is required to divest following … Continue Reading

Netto, Old Fold Road, Gateshead (28 May 2010)

Less than six months after the carve-up of the Netto estate was confirmed, the Danish supermarket fascia is well on its way to disappearing from the UK retail landscape.

Haldanes – currently distracted by the … Continue Reading

Haldanes store interior (28 Apr 2011). Photograph by Bryan Roberts

Following on from yesterday’s news regarding Haldanes filing for administration, I understand that the four stores “subject to possible acquisition” [broken link removed] are those in Tattershall, in … Continue Reading

Haldanes logo

The independent supermarket chain Haldanes looks set to become the latest retail casualty, after filing for an administration order today.

In a statement this afternoon, Arthur Harris, the CEO of Haldanes Stores Ltd and Ruston Retail, said:

“Following advice from our lawyers and an insolvency practitioner, we have made the decision to seek an administration order for Haldanes Stores Limited … Continue Reading

Former Safeway, Byker (6 Jun 2011)

It’s amazing how a throwaway remark can prompt an entire discussion on something unexpected…

In my January post about the divvying up of Netto’s North East store estate following the chain’s acquisition by Asda, I made passing reference to Birtley’s former Safeway – a store … Continue Reading