Supermarkets

If you live in or near a small to medium sized town, have you had a good look around it recently? It's changed. All those little interesting bespoke shops are disappearing only to be replaced with Pound shops and those boring fancy goods shops with I consider to be a contradiction in terms. Our town seems to have replaced these shops with a multitude of Bakery’s. Maybe they're trying to tell us that we're too thin or something. I just can't figure it.

One of the reasons that this is happening is the continued growth and expansion of supermarkets. They are convenient, easy to park at, and you can play dodgems with the trolleys. You can buy a whole range of goods without trampling down the high street calling in at several different shops. We are a captive audience as far as they are concerned. So much so, that sometimes you find you haven't got the bargain you thought you had.

Frans therefore has a prediction for you. Within the next 10/15 years, all those little independent shops will disappear. Supermarkets will expand and expand so that you have most of your needs without going anywhere else. Bespoke goods can be pre-ordered from their on-line catalogue so that you can pick up your purchases next time your in town. Sure, this will suite most people, but what about those independent shopkeepers? If they can't entice customers to their shops, they’re finished.

Not necessarily. There have been several surveys carried out over the last eighteen months, which shows that people are spending more and more online. In fact, internet sales now outstrip any other sales and this includes the construction industry. All in all this is good news for the independent. Another door has opened, another opportunity has presented itself. All they need is a simple web site which is Search Engine Optimised. Clean, cheap, efficient. Lower overheads means greater margins. A well designed web site gives the independent another crack of the whip. “But what about the cost?” I hear them cry, and they're right, you have to speculate to accumulate. You don't have to pay a fortune for a site, www.rentawebuk.com will rent you a website from as little as £9.99 per month. Have a look. It may be just the thing you're looking for. (We were going to call it International Rescue but apparently someone’s already done that).

Frans LaRoc