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	<title>Soult&#039;s Retail View &#187; Hemsworth</title>
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	<link>http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk</link>
	<description>Blogging about shops, by North East retail consultant and analyst Graham Soult</description>
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		<title>Haldanes stores in Tattershall, Wigton, Crieff and Tranent may be saved</title>
		<link>http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/2011/06/10/haldanes-stores-in-tattershall-wigton-crieff-and-tranent-may-be-saved/</link>
		<comments>http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/2011/06/10/haldanes-stores-in-tattershall-wigton-crieff-and-tranent-may-be-saved/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 10 Jun 2011 07:00:13 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Graham Soult</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Independent Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Supermarkets]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Biddulph]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Broxburn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Co-op]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Crieff]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dunbar]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Haldanes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hemsworth]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Home Bargains]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pwllheli]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tattershall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tranent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[UGO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wigton]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/?p=5502</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Following on from yesterday&#8217;s news regarding Haldanes filing for administration, I understand that the four stores]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="attachment_5484" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/haldanes_interior_bryan_roberts2.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-5484" title="Haldanes store interior (28 Apr 2011). Photograph by Bryan Roberts" src="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/haldanes_interior_bryan_roberts2-300x225.jpg" alt="Haldanes store interior (28 Apr 2011). Photograph by Bryan Roberts" width="300" height="225" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Haldanes store interior (28 Apr 2011). Photograph by Bryan Roberts</p></div>
<p>Following on from <a title="Store closures loom as indie grocer Haldanes calls in administrators [internal link in new window]" href="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/2011/06/09/store-closures-loom-as-indie-grocer-haldanes-calls-in-administrators/" target="_blank">yesterday&#8217;s news regarding Haldanes filing for administration</a>, I understand that the four stores <!--<a title="Haldanes seeks administration order - Express &amp; Star [external link in new window]" href="http://www.expressandstar.com/business/city-news/2011/06/09/haldanes-seeks-administration-order/" _mce_href="http://www.expressandstar.com/business/city-news/2011/06/09/haldanes-seeks-administration-order/" target="_blank">&#8211;>&#8221;subject to possible acquisition&#8221; <em>[broken link removed]</em><!--</a>&#8211;> are those in Tattershall, in Lincolnshire; Wigton, in Cumbria; Crieff, in Perth and Kinross; and Tranent, in East Lothian. As yet, however, there&#8217;s no news on which retailer or retailers may be stepping in to save those stores and jobs.</p>
<p>With the Haldanes website down, it&#8217;s been interesting to see the media grappling to work out how many stores there are in the company&#8217;s estate. Though the figure of 26 is being <a title="Hundreds of jobs go at Haldanes - BBC News [external link in new window]" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-13716691" target="_blank">widely cited</a> &#8211; and was the number of stores that Haldanes originally acquired from the Co-op, back in 2009 and 2010 &#8211; this is no longer quite right.</p>
<p>As I <a title="Alworths lined up for non-Woolies site in Alloa? [internal link in new window]" href="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/2010/06/25/alworths-lined-up-for-non-woolies-site-in-alloa/" target="_blank">noted back in June last year</a>, the Haldanes sites in <a title="25 jobs to go at supermarket" href="http://www.eastlothiancourier.com/news/dunbar/articles/2010/06/24/401743-25-jobs-to-go-at-supermarket/" target="_blank">Dunbar</a> and <a title="Haldanes set to axe one store two months after its opening" href="http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/articles.aspx?page=articles&amp;ID=210124" target="_blank">Hemsworth</a> closed after just a few months of trading, while the <a title="Jobs secured as Pwllheli Co-op announces refit - Caernarfon Herald [external link in new window]" href="http://www.caernarfonherald.co.uk/caernarfon-county-news/local-caernarfon-news/2010/07/15/jobs-secured-as-pwllheli-co-op-announces-refit-88817-26859496/" target="_blank">store in Pwllheli never actually opened</a>, and now houses a branch of Home Bargains.</p>
<div id="attachment_5505" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/ugo_biddulph_launch_geoff_capes.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-5505" title="Opening of UGO Biddulph by Geoff Capes, on 10 February 2011" src="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/ugo_biddulph_launch_geoff_capes-300x225.jpg" alt="Opening of UGO Biddulph by Geoff Capes, on 10 February 2011" width="300" height="225" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Opening of UGO Biddulph by Geoff Capes, on 10 February 2011</p></div>
<p>Of the remaining 23, two &#8211; in Biddulph, near Stoke-on-Trent, and Broxburn, in Edinburgh &#8211; were recently converted to the <a title="Will UGO back? Checking out Britain’s newest supermarket chain [internal link in new window]" href="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/2011/05/08/will-ugo-back-checking-out-britains-newest-supermarket-chain/" target="_blank">UGO fascia</a>, but, confusingly, <a title="Haldanes Stores to enter Administration - USDAW [external link in new window]" href="http://www.usdaw.org.uk/newsevents/news/2011/jun/haldanesstorestoenteradmin.aspx" target="_blank">DO still appear to be closing next week</a> along with the bulk of the Haldanes-branded estate.</p>
<p>As I <a title="Store closures loom as indie grocer Haldanes calls in administrators [internal link in new window]" href="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/2011/06/09/store-closures-loom-as-indie-grocer-haldanes-calls-in-administrators/" target="_blank">noted yesterday</a>, Haldanes&#8217; statement on its filing for administration made clear that UGO Stores Limited was &#8220;unaffected by this development and will continue to trade as normal.&#8221; I can only assume, therefore, that the UGO operations in Biddulph and Broxburn are still, technically, owned by Haldanes Stores Ltd rather than UGO Stores Limited, hence their impending closure.</p>
<p>It is, clearly, a complicated and <a title="Response to “Store closures loom as indie grocer Haldanes calls in administrators” [internal link in new window]" href="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/2011/06/09/store-closures-loom-as-indie-grocer-haldanes-calls-in-administrators/#comment-18686" target="_blank">confusing situation</a>. However, the closure of stores that opened as UGO prototypes less than four months ago is, at the least, psychologically unhelpful for the fledgling chain.</p>
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		<title>Alworths lined up for non-Woolies site in Alloa?</title>
		<link>http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/2010/06/25/alworths-lined-up-for-non-woolies-site-in-alloa/</link>
		<comments>http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/2010/06/25/alworths-lined-up-for-non-woolies-site-in-alloa/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 25 Jun 2010 15:05:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Graham Soult</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Property]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Supermarkets]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Woolworths]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Alloa]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Alworths]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Co-operative Group]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dunbar]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ethel Austin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Haldanes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hemsworth]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Poundland]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Somerfield]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tesco]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The Co-operative Food]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wick]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/?p=2584</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Just a week after its first two Scottish stores opened in Forfar and Cupar, the variety store chain Alworths is now &#8220;recruiting for enthusiastic, customer focussed individuals to work at its newest store opening in Alloa in July 2010.&#8221;  Alloa, in Clackmannanshire, is exactly the type of location that we are getting used to Alworths opening stores in &#8211; a [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="attachment_2154" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/alworths_amersham_graham_soult1.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-2154" title="Alworths fascia. Photograph by Graham Soult" src="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/alworths_amersham_graham_soult1-300x225.jpg" alt="Alworths fascia. Photograph by Graham Soult" width="300" height="225" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Alworths fascia</p></div>
<p>Just a week after its <a title="Coverage of Cupar Alworths opening raises a retail laugh" href="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/2010/06/16/coverage-of-cupar-alworths-opening-raises-a-retail-laugh/" target="_blank">first two Scottish stores opened</a> in Forfar and Cupar, the variety store chain Alworths is now &#8220;recruiting for enthusiastic, customer focussed individuals to work at its <a title="Recruitment - Alworths - Alloa" href="http://www.peopletime.co.uk/page.php?article=507&amp;name=Recruitment" target="_blank">newest store opening in Alloa</a> in July 2010.&#8221; </p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Alloa, in Clackmannanshire, is exactly the type of location that we are getting used to Alworths opening stores in &#8211; a small town of less than 20,000 people, with a pleasing, compact centre. However, given that Alloa&#8217;s former Woolworths was <a title="Poundland Snaps Up Ex-Woolies Stores And Staff" href="http://www.poundland.co.uk/press-centre/2009-press-centre/poundland-snaps-up-ex-woolies-stores-and-staff-april-2009/" target="_blank">snapped up by Poundland</a> over a year ago, it appears that Alloa&#8217;s new Alworths &#8211; the retailer&#8217;s tenth shop in all &#8211; will be the first to open in premises that were not previously a Woolworths store. [UPDATE, 28 June 2010: I now understand that Alworths will be <a title="Retail Chain store Alworths to set up shop in Alloa" href="http://forthcommercial.co.uk/?p=55" target="_blank">taking over Alloa's former Ethel Austin site</a>.]</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">This move is both significant and inevitable. The dwindling pool of vacant Woolies stores in half-decent and suitable locations has always meant that Alworths would, before long, need to cast its property net wider if it is to grow. More importantly, perhaps, doing so is also likely to benefit the brand, by helping Alworths to build a distinctive and modern identity that isn&#8217;t just based on bringing former Woolworths sites back to life. </p>
<p style="text-align: left;">The lack of appropriate former Woolworths sites may well be one reason for Alworths not yet making it to the North East, and I understand that there are no imminent plans for the retailer to open stores in this region. However, I&#8217;m told that the chain is continuing to scout for suitable locations across the country, and that there would be no bar to opening North East shops if the right premises in the right locations could be found. </p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Meanwhile, another recently launched retail chain &#8211; the supermarket Haldanes &#8211; appears to be having some difficulties in finding, and sustaining, the right store locations. </p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Launched at <!--<a title="Haldanes, Asco &amp; Alworths: counting on counter-intuition" href="http://www.haldanes-stores.co.uk/news/HaldanesGrocerarticle28NovLR.pdf" _mce_href="http://www.haldanes-stores.co.uk/news/HaldanesGrocerarticle28NovLR.pdf" target="_blank">&#8211;>almost exactly the same time as Alworths <em>[broken link removed]</em><!--</a>&#8211;>, Haldanes&#8217; <!--<a title="Latest News - Haldanes Stores" href="http://www.haldanes-stores.co.uk/haldanes-stores-news.html" _mce_href="http://www.haldanes-stores.co.uk/haldanes-stores-news.html" target="_blank">&#8211;>first store opened in Prestonpans <em>[broken link removed]</em><!--</a>&#8211;>, in East Lothian, back in November. Since then, the business has been busy snapping up stores that the Competition Commission had required the Co-operative Group to divest following its acquisition of Somerfield, with its estate peaking at 25 shops. However, sites in <a title="25 jobs to go at supermarket" href="http://www.eastlothiancourier.com/news/dunbar/articles/2010/06/24/401743-25-jobs-to-go-at-supermarket/" target="_blank">Dunbar</a> and <a title="Haldanes set to axe one store two months after its opening" href="http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/articles.aspx?page=articles&amp;ID=210124" target="_blank">Hemsworth</a> have closed this month after less than three months of trading, while the company&#8217;s Chairman, Arthur Harris, has <a title="Redundancy threat at Wick store" href="http://www.johnogroat-journal.co.uk/Home/Redundancy-threat-at-Wick-store-5946152.htm" target="_blank">&#8220;confirmed there is a consultation process ongoing with staff and unions about redundancies across the chain&#8221;</a>. </p>
<div id="attachment_2598" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/somerfield_logo_graham_soult.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-2598" title="Somerfield logo. Photograph by Graham Soult" src="http://www.soultsretailview.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/somerfield_logo_graham_soult-300x225.jpg" alt="Somerfield logo. Photograph by Graham Soult" width="300" height="225" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Somerfield logo</p></div>
<p style="text-align: left;">The reasons for Haldanes&#8217; <a title="Redundancy threat at Wick store" href="http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/articles.aspx?page=articles&amp;ID=210263" target="_blank">&#8220;drop in returns&#8221;</a> are unclear, and could be a combination of factors, such as location, range, price, or an unfamiliar brand. It&#8217;s interesting, however, that even the Co-op has reportedly seen a <a title="Haldanes set to axe one store two months after its opening" href="http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/articles.aspx?page=articles&amp;ID=210124" target="_blank">&#8220;plunge&#8221; in sales</a> in the Somerfield stores that it has retained and converted to its own fascia, while independent retailers who bought stores are apparently <a title="Haldanes set to axe one store two months after its opening" href="http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/articles.aspx?page=articles&amp;ID=210124" target="_blank">projecting sales declines</a> of up to a quarter. </p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Whatever the reasons are, <a title="Redundancy threat at Wick store" href="http://www.johnogroat-journal.co.uk/Home/Redundancy-threat-at-Wick-store-5946152.htm" target="_blank">blaming the presence of an existing out-of-town Tesco store</a> for the challenging trading at Wick&#8217;s Haldanes doesn&#8217;t really wash. It&#8217;s true that Tesco&#8217;s unceasing expansion provokes strong reactions from many &#8211; most recently the <a title="Mary Portas: supermarkets are killing local communities" href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/agriculture/supermarkets/7791746/Mary-Portas-supermarkets-are-killing-local-communities.html" target="_blank">&#8216;Queen of Shops&#8217; Mary Portas</a> &#8211; and that its arrival can impact negatively on existing centres.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">However, if a supermarket, like Haldanes, chooses to open a store in a location where Tesco is already established &#8211; in Wick&#8217;s case since November 2006 &#8211; the onus must surely be on that incoming retailer to do its homework beforehand, and to develop a way of trading better and cleverer than its competitors.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Sometimes, I feel, it&#8217;s just too easy for retailers to blame Tesco for their difficulties instead of reflecting on what they can do to improve and differentiate their own performance.</p>
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