Sir; Your half page tribute to Safeway's former chairman Sir Alistair Grant (The Grocer, last week, p10) was spot on to say he was unique. I first met him as a Fine Fare management trainee at his' Bridge O'Dee, Aberdeen, superstore in 1970 and was fortunate to have been at Safeway throughout his reign. Just as store managers used to say they worked for Pat Kieran or Terry Spratt rather than Safeway in the 1980s, so in the '90s we felt genuinely safe with Grant's reliable hand firmly on the tiller. My favourite recollection goes back to a spell in hospital. I was grateful for colleagues' many cards and best wishes but the chairman dispatched two books and a newsy, handwritten letter. He was indeed, everything you want from a boss ­ and a little bit more. Tony Combes Woking Surrey {{LETTERS }}

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