nickshanagher

We can read lots into Warren Buffett telling CNBC that he made a mistake in investing in Tesco. “I am going to make mistakes,” he said. “But not because I buy businesses that I like as they go down in price but I am just going to be wrong sometimes on the facts.” The interview that we can see does not go on to examine what these facts might be. What I would suggest is that Buffett is saying that Tesco is a well-run business for the world of shopping that used to exist when he bought into Tesco in 2007. The supermarket retail world has changed beyond recognition since then. Morrisons under Dalton Philips claims it will be the first retailer in the world to price match Aldi and Lidl with its Match & More initiative (based on its mid-range own brands, not its value range). If he reads Dieter Brandes' BareEssentials Philips will see this is not the case. History is littered with retailers who have tried to beat Aldi on price and failed. But is the Aldi UK model ...

The hypermarket and superstore share of all retail sales declined from 23.8% in 2000 to 18.6% in 2011, according to Planet Retail/Comscore figures quoted by the Financial Times. In future, general merchandise will not be in a big box - it will be delivered in a cardboard box, the FT quotes Dalton Philips of Morrisons.

On 20 June Paul Cheema told me how sales were: two good weeks, one OK week and one bad week. On Monday this week, Dalton Philips, chief executive of Morrisons, briefed journalists that this was a national trend, with grocery shopping being pushed towards the beginning of the month. What is Morrisions doing? It is concentrating its marketing on the period between the 27th of the month and the end of the month. What is Morrisons seeing? Big sales in week one and lower sales in weeks two, three and four. Shoppers are fillng their pantries and then trying to last the month. Mr Philips said the trend was evident everywhere outside London. The average household budget is £100 lighter each month due to higher VAT, fuel and other utility costs. Shoppers are looking for value Local shops need to watch for two things. One, the timing of supplier promotions. Two, if shoppers are going once a month to the superstore, can they win them for more top up purchases. Think about your buying patt...