The story of Tesco's abandonment of trading stamps and launching of Operation Checkout has been told perhaps more than enough over the past year. What is not so well‐known is the effect that rapidly boosted turnover had upon their distribution system. “We must recognise the fact,” says Ian...

Starting with the fundamental question of ‘Why change at all?’ E Roy Griffiths goes on to examine a number of problems faced by the retail business in the planning and implementation of change. Drawing on his experience with Sainsbury's, he considers the strict administrative demarcations...

A report made to the CIES ten years ago on the subject of centralisation vs de‐centralisation found that centralisation acted as ‘a very real motivator for growth’, but that this motivation would reach its limit if the process were carried too far. Another study was recently sponsored by...

Ever since the formation of the voluntary Consumers' Association in the late 1950s this country has been concerned with making sure that the consumer has a fair deal. Recently the Office of Fair Trading was set up which, amongst other things, provides for customers information and advice on the...

How have retailers survived the recession, and who will prosper in the coming decade? In order to answer these questions, David Cook and Peter Doyle examined the strategies of a number of organisations which have managed to flourish in these times of trimmed margins and economic restraint. Their...

The Loi Royer, intended to restrict the development of hypermarkets in France, received a great deal of publicity when it was passed in 1973. What is not so widely known is that West Germany also has its planning restrictions, notably para 11 of the Regulation on the Use of Buildings. This was...

In Part One of this article, published in the last issue of RDM, Nigel Piercy examined the role and importance of sales forecasting within a distributive organisation with special regard to the smaller firm and to the small unit manager who have very limited resources on which to base their...

Each Colgate‐Palmolive salesman now has a lightweight portable terminal linked to a central mini‐computer that incorporates a voice response unit. Marketed by Menzies Communications Systems Ltd, the system provides faster service to customers and speeds cash flow.

This is the first in a series of occasional articles on aspects of the law which are of relevance to the retailer. L.B. Curzon, who is a Barrister, is also Principal of the College for the Distributive Trades in London.

Since 1973, electricity prices have risen by well over 100%and according to the Electricity Consumers’ Council have increased four‐fold against the retail prices' three‐fold rise since 1962. T.E. Stephens, Manager of Analytical Studies, Consumers Utility Costs Ltd, takes a timely look at...