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Where do independent retail stores shine? Wholesalers know that their customers do well in troubled, lower income neighbourhoods but they don't tend to share this knowledge widely. Evidence of this is rarely published but some interesting numbers emerge in an FT article on up-market US grocer Whole Foods plans for a store in Englewood, a poor Chicago suburb. City analysts agonise at whether Whole Foods can go down market. But consultant Mari Gallagher shows the potential gap. Of the 87 stores in Englewood that accept food stamps, 85 are "liquor, dollar or convenience stores that specialise in candy and soda." A spokesman for Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel says it is investing $10m in subsidies for this Whole Foods store because some communities "have been ignored by companies that want to expand." There is plenty going on in this story for independent operators in poorer areas to think about: Are you close enough ...

The headline caught my attention Underdog businesses are more likely to post fake Yelp reviews. The full article is a useful resource to explain how you might use social media to build your shop's reputation and business. Don't be tempted to cheat. More on www.betterretailing.com .

Online businesses don't pay local taxes, Sainsbury's boss Justin King argues in a big CityAM interview spread. Unlike the web retail businesses, Sainsbury's  "pay business rates at a local level" and "employ people locally" and "pay people locally" and "they spend their earnings locally". "If we are seeing a shift in consumer behaviour towards purchasing online rather than their local store then the government will have to address that the tax system is being usurped by a change in behaviour," he adds.  The point to notice here is that connection of Sainsbury's with "local shop". It is spin. But very effective spin. As any independent retailers who have talked to their MPs about competition from multiples will know, the grocers are very successful at projecting the "local" benefits that they will bring. Perhaps 10 years ago this was true. But supported by a better supply chain, independent...

It was the stream of shoppers visiting Steve Archer’s new convenience store in Newcastle-under-Lyme last week that really underlined his point that sometimes local shopkeepers cannot see the opportunity under their noses. He had persuaded the landlord of two small closed shops to let him lease them, knock them together and provide a full convenience offering including off licence. Nearby retailers led a petition of their customers to oppose the off licence and lost. “Local people really like the idea of being able to walk to their shop, rather than travel to the supermarket,” Steve told me. I could see this was true with my eyes. Mr Archer’s message is pretty much the same as the one Justin King, the boss of Sainsbury, told the national media at a City dinner around the same time. Shoppers are going “back to the future”, Mr King said, making more frequent trips and putting fewer items in their baskets. There is a big opportunity, Ed Garner, communications director of Kantar Worldpanel,...

Jeff Pearce was just about to pull the steel shutters down at the front of his store when he noticed a young girl sitting on the ground with a blanket around her shoulders. It was 24 December and cold and Jeff was looking forward to two days off with his family before the sale started at 9am on 27 December. "Are you all right," he asked her. "I'll be all right if you've got a black pair of size 10, leather pants for just £1," she said. Jeff's first thought was that the Liverpool Echo had printed the wrong date for the start of his sale. His small shop in Church Street was doing OK and Jeff thought it could do better, hence the £1 leather pants offer. As an independent retailer, he was experimenting with marketing. He could not believe this girl was planning to spend two days camped outside his shop. He suggested that she could go home. She declined. Later that night, after talking with his family, he decided to drive by to see if she was still t...

For people in north London on a sunny Tuesday and looking forward to tonight's football match in Barcelona, this sign has especial resonance. For other people, it may just be words. For quiz lovers, it is a sign filled with misery. However, it is a sign that captures the ability of local businesses to win local customers. There is an unstated identification with the hopes and dreams of thousands of football fans. Tomorrow, after Arsenal have prevailed in the Camp Nou, even this post may have a special place in my heart. Or not.