Morrisons taking the axe to its fresh counters, cafès and convenience stores has been widely covered by the national newspapers. The Guardian reports its move, including cutbacks to the famous Market Street proposition, echoes recent cutbacks from those of rival Sainsbury’s and repeats CEO Rami Baitiéh’s blaming of the government for hitting retailers with an “avalanche of costs”. The Daily Mail features a handy interactive map, allowing users to find out if their local stores are impacted by the cuts. You can follow The Grocer’s coverage here.
There is even worse news in the Telegraph, which warns a “flurry” of cost increases will be heaped on the pub industry next month, pushing the average price of a pint of beer above £5 for the first time. Rachel Reeves again cops the blame with the British Beer & Pub Association saying a combination of higher taxes and increases in the minimum wage will mean the average cost of a pint of beer is to surge by 4.4%, rising faster than the current rate of inflation. This means drinkers can expect to pay an average of £5.01 per pint in Britain compared with the current price of £4.80, it said, citing a survey by Frontier Economics.
There’s better news for customers’ wallets in today’s papers, including the Independent, with the big announcement that Co-op is matching Aldi prices on over 100 everyday essentials, marking what it bills as the largest price-match initiative of its kind in UK convenience stores. The retailer said that more than one million members purchase at least one of these price-matched products weekly, including Co-op branded fresh produce, meat, chicken, and dairy. Read The Grocer’s take on the story, as the retailer offers price-matched products exclusively for Co-op members.
Retailers’ costs and prices ontinue to dominate the news with a salutary warning in The Guardian of what could happen if the industry isn’t able to keep them in check. It reports how shoppers in Sweden are boycotting supermarkets in protest at soaring bills with a new government food strategy set to include measures to increase food production. Perhaps that’s one for the agenda for the UK version’s first board meeting tomorrow in what promises to be a big day all round for news.
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