Dear Jac – Page 86
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Dear Jac
Competition and repetition can spoil a local parade
I sometimes get calls from retailers up in arms about fellow traders, usually on the same parade, who they see as cramping their style.
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Dear Jac
The nice old gent and his broken cane strike again
In the last issue I reported on Anne Everton's store being targeted by some 'nice old gent' who wrote to her claiming to have fallen over in her doorway.
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Dear Jac
The language of legalese is a powerful tool
Patrice Villeger is fighting his local landlord to allow him to sell burgers and hot dogs to local kids.
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Dear Jac
CC rules against Tesco purchase
Competition Commission (CC) chiefs have ruled that Tesco's purchase of a former Co-op store in Slough has led to reduced competition and choice in the area.
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Dear Jac
Why you can bank on more holidays costing you more
By Monday week you will need to allow your staff an extra four days off a year if full time and a pro-rata amount if they're part time.
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Dear Jac
Heard the one about the 'nice old stick'?
He wrote an undated letter to 'the manager' at Anne Everton's tiny store on an estate in Battle, East Sussex, to say that he fell over in the store's doorway while he was there on holiday.
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Dear Jac
Who's in charge? It's often debatable
A lot of retailers think that they should be in charge of their supplies. It has never quite worked like this with news and magazines.
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Dear Jac
PO... phone bills. This touched a raw nerve
I didn't expect much feedback to subpostmaster Paul Calladine's complaint last issue about having to pay a £1.50 penalty fee for not settling his PO-shared phone line bill by direct debit fee.
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Dear Jac
Wage cost percentage - it all adds up
Of course, I'm playing fast and loose with the language when I assure you it all adds up
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Dear Jac
Bibby takes 51% Costcutter stake
The Bibby Line Group, which handles distribution for Nisa-Today's, has become the majority shareholder in Costcutter.
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Dear Jac
Independents prove they are ace age-checkers
How many of you were as eagle-eyed as Eddie Pitman who runs Pitman's, an offie in Great Yarmouth?
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Dear Jac
Those wrinkles in licensing are still appearing
The furore that the new licensing regime spawned has died down, but there are still silly things happening.
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Dear Jac
Know any movers and shakers in the Midlands?
Can anyone recommend a good, non-pricey shopfitter in the Coventry area?
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Dear Jac
Hands up - who knows the answer?
Anyone who has read two or three of these columns knows how quick I am at maths . Still, David Cornthwaite emailed me with a real puzzler.
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Dear Jac
More sums... oh I'm warming to this subject
To crack on with our masterclass, do you know the difference between profit on return and mark-up?
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Dear Jac
Power to the people? They're not sure
BBC Radio 4 is looking at the power of the supermarkets this week.
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Dear Jac
The 'evergreen' contract and the abuse of power
Somebody somewhere is facing whopping increases in their energy bills because they forgot to cancel their contract in time.
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Dear Jac
The end of the roll? Or the end of the line?
Human error affects retailers in many ways, but it seems unfair that Payzone (Alphyra) won't fork out 10 quid because a retailer didn't realise the till roll had run out.
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Dear Jac
Removing the competition: PayPoint rules
Last month I reported on the 'exclusive' nature of PayPoint when the company put a retailer on notice because he refused to remove a 3R top-up terminal that he had hosted for 15 years.