All Fight Your Corner articles

  • Chess pieces
    News

    Playing to win in Tesco town

    2014-07-30T10:18:00Z

    Three years ago Andover was one of the UK’s top Tesco towns, with few independent c-stores still in the game. But after making some shrewed moves, the indies face a brighter future…

  • competition
    News

    Watching the competition

    2014-01-20T10:08:00Z

    No business can afford to live in a bubble. Keeping an eye on the  competition means getting up close and personal with rivals and employing the sleuthing skills of staff and customers.

  • Tesco Express
    News

    Frontline revisited

    2013-08-27T12:03:00Z

    A number of c-stores have taken on the multiples when they moved in on their patch. But have they sustained the fight? Robin Mannering reports.

  • am2pm Harrow
    News

    From the ashes

    2013-07-16T11:02:00Z

    Dilip Shah’s Harrow c-store was holding its own against a Tesco Express across the road, but then disaster struck. Now he’s picking up the pieces.

  • out of town retail
    News

    System failure

    2013-06-04T14:51:00Z

    A council’s recent planning decision calls into question the government’s stated desire to protect town centres. Robin Mannering reports.

  • Tesco protest
    News

    Victory in Basingstoke

    2013-04-23T16:11:00Z

    Mark Buttress took on the might of Tesco and won in front of a government inspector. Robin Mannering charts the two-year journey to victory.

  • Sherborne retailers
    Features and analysis

    Sherborne ultimatum

    2013-03-12T16:55:00Z

    Tesco must be used to local opposition to its ambitions by now, but even it must have been shocked by the resistance it met from traders and residents in Sherborne. Robin Mannering reports.

  • Soham
    Features and analysis

    NPPF: A reality check

    2013-01-29T16:21:00Z

    An out-of-town supermarket application near Soham is a test case for new planning rules. Robin Mannering looks at its implications for the future.

  • schools
    News

    All part of the job

    2012-12-04T11:33:00Z

    Getting involved in your local community is now an essential way to stand your ground, and customers expect it of you. Robin Mannering reports

  • Spar Dartmouth
    News

    Here to stay

    2012-10-23T00:00:00Z

    Julian Holliss tells Gaelle Walker how he turned trading in the shadow of two multiples into an opportunity to restructure his business and grow footfall

  • Llanrwst
    News

    Behind closed doors

    2012-09-11T00:00:00Z

    A Welsh council ‘shot itself in the foot’ when it tried to sell land to Tesco behind the public’s back. Robin Mannering reports

  • Brownlies_store
    Features and analysis

    The Biggar picture

    2012-08-01T00:00:00Z

    Brownlie’s of Biggar had to think outside the box to tackle the arrival of a new Sainsbury’s Local.

  • North East Convenience Stores
    News

    Nisa Whickham: Bring it on

    2012-06-20T00:00:00Z

    Project Fightback began in September last year when the Vadhera brothers heard Tesco was set to invade their retail space.

  • Asda plans
    News

    Amit 1 - Asda 0

    2012-02-16T00:00:00Z

    Amit Patel had everything to play for when he spearheaded a campaign to prevent…

  • Weston-Super-Mare
    News

    New tricks

    2012-02-03T00:00:00Z

    When a Tesco Express threatened to ruin Mark Canniford’s business overnight, he devised…

  • fight your corner
    News

    Super store man

    2011-12-22T12:08:00Z

    Nisa retailer Arul Masilamany is proving that Tesco isn’t the only way in Essex…

  • SAINSBURYS-LOCAL-ZOMBIES
    Features and analysis

    Waking the dead

    2011-11-11T00:00:00Z

    Thinking outside the box when protesting can produce dramatic results…

  • TESCO-TOWN1
    Features and analysis

    Tesco Town

    2011-09-04T00:00:00Z

    Andover’s independents refuse to be squeezed out of the marketplace by Tesco…

  • ZED-KHAN
    Features and analysis

    He who dares

    2011-08-20T00:00:00Z

    Zed Khan was told it would be all over when a Tesco Express opened nearby…

  • Supermarket
    Features and analysis

    New face, same fight

    2011-07-24T00:00:00Z

    Convenience retailers are facing competition from the mults on ever-increasing fronts, but evidence shows there is reason to stand firm