Forum: Shopping daze!

Dec 24 2008 by Andrew Jackson, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

HAVE you been to the shops yet this Christmas?

I’ve tried to avoid them so far – I’m going today though.

To the garage on Halifax Road in Birchencliffe. I’m sure the children will be happy with air fresheners and WD40 but it’s going to take some explaining with the missus and her charcoal briquettes.

I’m not the only one with shopping concerns however.

TommyDGNR8 said: “Both KMC and WD Huddersfield are stumbling blindly on with their half-baked plans to supply ever more retail space in Huddersfield.

“Meanwhile, Woolies and MFI will both be gone in a month’s time and there might be a dozen more following them next year.”

Otis added: “Wait until the supermarkets move on to Plan B.

“I haven’t been to the USA. I don’t eat enough to qualify for a visa. But I understand that in the larger ones there you can buy practically anything including cars, insurance, financial services and even houses.

“In many of our larger supermarkets you can already buy clothing, electrical goods, hardware, postal services and a multitude of articles which at one time would have required a visit to a specialist shop.

“The first casualty of the changes in shopping habits has been the outdoor markets, the second has been local shops.

“I think the third casualty will be the shopping malls and precincts like Kingsgate or the proposed Queensgate. Is there anything at present on sale in Kingsgate that a supermarket can’t stock.”

In a later post, Otis seems to sense a darker cloud hanging across the whole retail industry, adding: “The intention of supermarkets is to monopolise trade and get you to do everything in one-stop shopping. If you look at the layout of supermarkets in relation to practically every town in the country you will find that they surround the outer limits, building supermarkets on all the main approaches.

“Eventually wherever you live you will have a supermarket as your ‘local’.

“Why bother to get the car out and trail into town with all the niggles I mentioned when you have everything plus free parking on your doorstep.

“Councils have not yet woken up to the threat to their town centres and it may well be too late when they do.”

When do the sales start again?