Panic buying...

[vickster]

The nearby Tesco Extra has had long queues outside every day since this situation started - people waiting up to an hour to get in and shop.
The last two days it's been raining and cold and guess what - no queues.

Presumably everyone is now stocked up on essential items...or did they not need to go shopping in the first place?

I’ve not had to wait at mine, but I go at 9pm, same for Asda. The only day I couldn’t get in was at Easter

 

[PaulSB]

Read it again. I have deliveries at most once every 2 weeks.
Home deliveries locally have increased from 177 to 284 by hiring extra staff and vehicles.
To get stock control right then customers have to behave rationally.
Its normal to get substitutes its what's available on the day. I often order more of a cheaper cider (85p) knowing they won't have enough in and they substitute £2 a bottle cider at no extra charge. I tell them what substitutes i want and I don't pay extra.
No Aldi has been fully stocked throughout the lockdown. None whatsoever. You have gone when they have what you want in. Do you go every day?
Its normal for some Brits to find fault flaws etc with everything British and perfection in everything foreign.

I have read it again and see why I thought you were getting consecutive deliveries. Happy to hear you're minimising your deliveries.

I'm afraid you are incorrect regarding stock control. Any multiple retailer will know what is in stock and at which stores. The online system should be able to indicate to a customer whether or not an item is available for the order. If it's not available the customer can then chose a substitute. My local micro-brewery manages this so I'm sure Tesco should be able to!

Can you provide factual evidence in relation to ALDI. I have two ALDIs and two Tescos locally. I always shop at ALDI and Tesco for lines ALDI don't stock. Since the start of the crisis I have been able to do a normal weekly shop at either ALDI with no sign of empty shelves. I've visited the local Tescos on the same trip. The queue is usually a minimum of 40 minutes and there are huge swathes of empty shelves.

I've been clear to comment only on my local area and I see Tesco failing and ALDI succeeding. You are making sweeping generalisations based on zero facts.

Deliberately working the system seems a little dishonest to me.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

I’ve not had to wait at mine, but I go at 9pm, same for Asda. The only day I couldn’t get in was at Easter

All the shops in our area are closing at 8pm, I think it's only Aldi that are open till 10pm, it seems like Asda are picking all the delivery & C&C orders overnight so their pickers aren't on the shop floor when they are open for normal customer, don't know this as fact, but our 3PM C&C was ready at 10AM

I'm afraid you are incorrect regarding stock control. Any multiple retailer will know what is in stock and at which stores. The online system should be able to indicate to a customer whether or not an item is available for the order. If it's not available the customer can then chose a substitute. My local micro-brewery manages this so I'm sure Tesco should be able to!

I'm not sure that Tesco's stock system is very good, which I think is the biggest part of their problems, others have coped better. They I believe are highly reliant on run rates, we've noticed in the past that if something goes out of stock then that's it it's unlikely to be available again. For instance X weeks ago they sold 100 tins of Boris Beans, so the system orders 100 tins of Boris Beans for the following week, but due to some reason on one week Boris Beans couldn't be obtained, so when the system comes to reorder the following week, it sees none have been sold so doesn't order anymore.

 

[PaulSB]

All the shops in our area are closing at 8pm, I think it's only Aldi that are open till 10pm, it seems like Asda are picking all the delivery & C&C orders overnight so their pickers aren't on the shop floor when they are open for normal customer, don't know this as fact, but our 3PM C&C was ready at 10AM
I'm not sure that Tesco's stock system is very good, which I think is the biggest part of their problems, others have coped better. They I believe are highly reliant on run rates, we've noticed in the past that if something goes out of stock then that's it it's unlikely to be available again. For instance X weeks ago they sold 100 tins of Boris Beans, so the system orders 100 tins of Boris Beans for the following week, but due to some reason on one week Boris Beans couldn't be obtained, so when the system comes to reorder the following week, it sees none have been sold so doesn't order anymore.

We used to suffer that as a B&Q supplier. When asked why products weren't being ordered the response would be "we haven't sold any!" Further investigation at our end would show the items had never been stocked.

To their credit B&Q took this on board and resolved the issues. An approach we found typical of how they operated. Discover a problem, understand it and then correct it.

 

[matticus]

Has anyone here visited every UK tesco and aldi store, every day of lockdown?
If you have, speak up - we need you now!

 

[Deleted member 26715]

We used to suffer that as a B&Q supplier. When asked why products weren't being ordered the response would be "we haven't sold any!" Further investigation at our end would show the items had never been stocked.

To their credit B&Q took this on board and resolved the issues. An approach we found typical of how they operated. Discover a problem, understand it and then correct it.

A good stock manager will out perform an algorithm any day, let the algorithm run, then get human to check it,

 

[vickster]

Close to me, Sainsbury’s closing at 8, Asda and Tesco 10, little Waitrose is 7 or 8, don’t have an Aldi close, never shop in Lidl, not sure about Morrison’s.
Last few weeks I’ve been pretty much able to get whatever I want at Asda or Tesco, not bothered with big Sainsbury’s or Morrison’s. I buy flour about once every 5 years if that (when I get dragged into a work baking competition ) so the lack is no problem for me.
I did cycle past a Portuguese cafe yesterday which was advertising flour in its window, presumably selling from large wholesale sacks?

 

[mjr]

Close to me, Sainsbury’s closing at 8, Asda and Tesco 10, little Waitrose is 7 or 8, don’t have an Aldi close, never shop in Lidl, not sure about Morrison’s.

I just checked the local state of play and it is improving: Sainsbury's 8-8 but Baltika 8am-9pm, Spar and Morrisons 7-9, Aldi, Lidl, Asda and Tesco 8-10, Costcutter 7-11. So except for Sainsbury's, they're all now open more than the 8-8 that they all cut to back on 24 March, but none of the 24x6 shops are yet back to their old times.

I did cycle past a Portuguese cafe yesterday which was advertising flour in its window, presumably selling from large wholesale sacks?

Probably. Bakeries and now pubs here are bagging flour from their catering packs. I discovered today that the shop in the village after next is stocking bread flour bagged by the main town bakery, which makes my life easier than visiting the windmill halfway across the borough, but most village shops aren't an option for anyone working 9-5, so again I am lucky to work flexitime.

 

[mjr]

A snaking rope queues? Which obviously would not meet the social distancing.

Why not? Nothing requires every between-rope row must be occupied.

Because your worthless? Really? do you think everyone or is it every company that despises you?

No, at the moment it's just the ones forcing customers to things like stand in the rain because they would rather keep the unused trollies and the plant displays in the entrance hall because clearly neither of those will survive any rain(!)

 

[Rusty Nails]

Around our area some stores have large queues, some don't. The queues vary at different times of the day. Some local stores have no queues at all.

Should I be outraged? Is there a stores ombudsman I can complain to?

 

[Deleted member 26715]

Is there a stores ombudsman I can complain to?

Would it do any good if there was, every one I have had contact with have been chocolate fireguards

 

[Notafettler]

I have stood outside Morrison. Queue looked very long but only 10 minutes maximum. Some people have no patience they think they are hard done by waiting in a queue. I then went to Wilko big queue there, again didn't take that long to get to the front but when I did, I had to tell the lady that 3 people had left and she hadn't let me in? (had to catch a bus) turns out one in one out includes lady in front of me who had.....4 kids!!
As my grandmother said "let me tell you in the war we used to have to queue for 2 weeks just to sniff a sausage"!!

 

[Notafettler]

Would it do any good if there was, every one I have had contact with have been chocolate fireguards

Who have you been complaining to?
I have feeling his post was tongue in cheek!!

 

[Notafettler]

Why not? Nothing requires every between-rope row must be occupied.


No, at the moment it's just the ones forcing customers to things like stand in the rain because they would rather keep the unused trollies and the plant displays in the entrance hall because clearly neither of those will survive any rain(!)

Standing in the rain!
The end of the world is nigh!
Would I be right in thinking your a dry weather cyclist?
Possibly even summer only.
Can't stop for the answer have to go for 3 hour cycle ride and walk in the heavy (ish) rain. Could give it a miss but dog wouldn't approve!!!

 

[Notafettler]

Has anyone here visited every UK tesco and aldi store, every day of lockdown?
If you have, speak up - we need you now!

@mjr @phthey have visited the ones with 10 minute queues but due to lack of patience they thought they had waited for considerably longer!!!