Carrefour improving the French retail experience

[velcorin]

For all you lovers (not!), of French supermarkets, Carrefour are trying to do something about it. Incorporating all sorts for 20th century (!) tricks, like zoning, wider aisles, nice staff (stop laughing at the back!), promotions people understand. No mention of getting the prices right, improving the quality of stuff, or actually having some stock, but it's a start.....................

http://www.francesoir.fr/economie/carrefour-reinvente-l-hyper.11905

[Pierre ZFP]

Pehaps because Carrefour is now being run by Tesco they're getting a kick up the backside.

[Pickles]

[quote user="Pierre ZFP"]Pehaps because Carrefour is now being run by Tesco they're getting a kick up the backside.

[/quote]

Errr ... Carrefour and Tesco swapped some shops outside France, but otherwise - unless you have a scoop on a coup in the share markets that I have missed - there is no connection between the two. Certainly not a case of Tesco running Carrefour ...

Regards

Pickles

[Quillan]

[quote user="Pickles"][quote user="Pierre ZFP"]Pehaps because Carrefour is now being run by Tesco they're getting a kick up the backside.
[/quote]

Errr ... Carrefour and Tesco swapped some shops outside France, but otherwise - unless you have a scoop on a coup in the share markets that I have missed - there is no connection between the two. Certainly not a case of Tesco running Carrefour ...

Regards
Pickles
[/quote]

Is the confusion because Carrefour 'poached' James McCann who was tipped to be the next boss of Tesco. I believe he was quite a 'wiz' at Tesco's and was sen as a great new asset to Carrefour.

It did own one hypermarket at the ports but that closed this year I believe. Likewise in the lat 90's it also owned a chain called Cedico in France which it sold off after a few years but what became of them  I don't know. Thats about it for Tesco and France.

The bit that your talking about did cause a stir at the time as no money actually passed between the two (Carrefour and Tesco).

[velcorin]

I did find it slightly bizarre that they had to ask 50,000 people (in good old sexist France, they were all female), to find out what their customers wanted. One post on here would have soon told them, or visit 3 stores at random in the UK, job done.

[mint]

Velcorin, I just love your cynicism![:D]

BTW, that's a compliment and not meant sarcastically!

[Pickles]

[quote user="velcorin"]I did find it slightly bizarre that they had to ask 50,000 people (in good old sexist France, they were all female), to find out what their customers wanted. One post on here would have soon told them, or visit 3 stores at random in the UK, job done.[/quote]

I find it very bizarre that, whilst keeping a straight face, bank PR people in France can say "there is no demand for free banking - the customers do not want it" and the mobile phone networks can say "people do not want Pay-As-You-Go mobile phone credit which does not expire" without being beaten to death by a lynch mob of hordes of outraged customers.

Regards

Pickles

[Braco]

While I like Carrefour they have a long way to go on getting the price right.

Cucumbers were 1.5 e each last week in Pezenas.

[Pickles]

[quote user="Quillan"][quote user="Pierre ZFP"]Pehaps because Carrefour is now being run by Tesco they're getting a kick up the backside.[/quote]

Is the confusion because Carrefour 'poached' James McCann who was tipped to be the next boss of Tesco. I believe he was quite a 'wiz' at Tesco's and was sen as a great new asset to Carrefour.[/quote]

Aha! Of course that's what he must've been referring to: and there was I thinking that Pierre had hit the bottle early ...

Regards

Pickles

[Gardener]

I like carrefour and find them the best of the rest ( of those that I have shopped at), the choice and price is much better. I like their Regent's Park range of crumpets and scones , with the little story about the English Miss Pitbullmood [:)]

[Dog]

I went into Eleclerc at 8am the other week in Bergerac in our never ending hilarious search for the cheapest sparkling white wine.

Got 12 bottles for 98 cents a pop.

Told the girl on the check out it was for breakfast.

What surprised me was all the store adverts over the tannoy were in English!!!

[Etoile]

All I want is to be able to ask someone where something is, without them all disappearing like waiting staff at a French restaurant.

[Gardian]

Actually, the 'French retail experience' has improved quite a bit in the last ten years.

I can remember holidaying down here in the late 90's and most of the hypers in southern France were decidedly scruffy, if not dirty. Now, the 2 majors in our local town are quite reasonable, one a new-build (to replace the old clapped-out place), the other re-furbished to a good standard.

We don't shop in either.  We drive 20kms on, to a place (Leclerc) that's better stocked & where you can always walk up to an unoccupied checkout.  A bit mad, I know, but it suits us (but it's only every 2-3 wks).

The majors spend €000's trying to understand shopping habits, because 'loyalty' is crucial.

But nobody ever asks me [8-)]    

[Chancer]

I was in Netto yesterday, the manager reproached me for putting articles into my own shopping bag instead of using their baskets (at least they have them, Lidl and Aldi have none), I politely showed him how filthy all his plastic baskets were and that they were IMHO a health risk, I got the c'est normal and a shoulder shrug.

He asked about my accent and complimented me on my spoken French and then asked me if I could translate a sign for him as he has lots of problems with English tourist customers not understanding it and getting angry.

I am always very happy to oblige but for the first time ever I refused, the reason being was that the sign outside clearly their horaires d'ouverture as being 09.00 to 12.00 whereas his handcrafted sign that one cannot see until one enters the shop says "les portes ferme à 11.30 pour la fermeture du magasin à 11.45"

[Gardian]

I mentioned this thread to Mrs G today and she immediately went in to 'tilt' mode.[blink]

Along the lines of  "If they want to improve the retail experience, they'd stop filling the shelves during normal opening times and leave less **** around for folk like me to trip over". OH is partially sighted, so you can perhaps understand her vehemence.

She's right though - worse for her obviously, but a potential problem for any of us.  

[Chancer]

Trouble is no-one wants to work anything other than normal working hours which to someone like me are anything but normal.

Apart from Netto all our supermarkets stay open at lunch hour but with invisible staff.

A brand new multi-million Carrefour right by the autoroute junction is closed all day every Monday

Even the sub contractors do the maintenance during normal working hours when the Maxi-coop was poshed up to become a Super U they were arc welding and grinding overhead conduits without even closing off the aisles, except between 12.00 and 14.00 of course, the safest time to do ones shopping as long as you dont actually want to pay for it.

Editted, sort of on the same subject, I was in Brico-depot beside one of the big reach trucks that they use to lift stuff down from on high (they hadnt closed off the aisle) when a voice floated down to me asking me to push the joystick to let him down, he was balancing on the forks at maximum lift [:-))]

Of course I made him sweat a bit by lunging for every control but the one he mentioned saying "celui ci"?

[Quillan]

I have to say it was quite a shock when we came here to live and I tried to shop at 13:00 in the local supermarket to discover it closed. Fortunately they run a trial a few years back and its now open all day in the week and half day on Sunday. When your used to being able to go to Sainsbury's, Tesco's and alike any hour of the day (or night) in the UK it does make you wonder how Carrefour has become Tesco's biggest European competitor, I guess it must be because of number of the shops.

Health and safety seems to be almost non existent. Visit our famous Cathar Castles and there is no barrier to separate you from the path and the 100M drop on the other side. Mind you the French attitude is quite refreshing in some ways, sort of if your stupid enough to walk near the edge and fall off that's your problem and as for your kid's, well its for you to keep them under control. I do remember many years back that an English woman tripped over in Quillan when walking down the high street. She tired to take the council to court for damages. When she finally got there, much against the advice of others, the judge (or whatever he/she is called in France) asked her what she was doing at the time. She replied "I was walking down the road looking at the shops" he/she simply said "so you were not looking where you were going then" and threw the case out. Shame people in the UK don't take personal responsibility instead of trying to blame somebody else and look at it as an opportunity to get some money.

[Iceni]

When we first arrived here in 2003 our local Leclerc (a modest little dump) closed at lunchtime on Mon - Thurs. After a year or few it stayed open every lunchtime. However Sunday opening stays very French, mornings only for 4 days a year, mid-July to mid-August. For those who must our Leader Price is open every Sunday morning, including most bank holidays (if you know what I mean). Though shopping between 12.30 and 14.30 is still a pain as all cashiers except one take their lunch breaks at these times.

Aldi , a new store that opened a couple of years ago closes every lunchtime except Satuday.

As regards H&S it is a shame that they don't have that refreshing attitude to swimming pools. I await the day when every yard of beach and shore around every sea, ocean, river, lake and stream is fenced - but of course children and drunks can only drown in swimming pools.

John

[cooperlola]

Chancer, I  don't know if it's about the hours people want to work. When I filled shelves for a supermarket in the UK they had completely stopped the night shifts because they would no longer pay night rates (which have been higher for decades in Britain - don't know about here.)  It always struck me as bonkers since we worked much faster with no customers about, plus the shoppers were continually annoyed because we were (unavoidably) in their way.

[Chancer]

The new law allowing Sunday trading in certain zones concertés requires the employers to pay double salary.

So much for Saturday or Sunday for ados.

[velcorin]

I wish you hadn't mentioned Sunday trading, my particular "most hated thing about France"....................I'm going to have to go outside for a fag, otherwise I'll ranting for hours.

2 people leave the flat at 7.00am, everyday, arrive back at 7.30pm everyday. We get Sat to do the shopping, banks, insurance, look at houses, furniture, cars, TVs..................and Sunday?..............nothing, nada, rien, zilch. Sorry couldn't help it. Going for a fag now!

[Chancer]

Dont come to my area expecting to look at any goods on a Saturday, at least not between 12 (11 if its Netto) and 2.30 as not only will the shop be closed but the shutters will be drawn, same on a Monday.

I had some friends from Amiens in my car when I stopped at the fuel station at the nearest centre commercial at midday on a Saturday (on 24 hour pump service of course), they thought the whole area had gone into liquidation or a nuclear attack was imminent, one hour later and we were at Lille where the contrast could not have been greater.

[PeterG]

[quote user="velcorin"]

.I'm going to have to go outside for a fag, otherwise I'll ranting for hours. Going for a fag now![/quote]

Just an aside.

Top Tip

Smokers, when you are at home and want a cigarette, ask all your non smoking guests to go and stand outside whilst you have one.

 

 

[cooperlola]

[quote user="PeterG"][quote user="velcorin"]

.I'm going to have to go outside for a fag, otherwise I'll ranting for hours. Going for a fag now![/quote]

Just an aside.

Top Tip

Smokers, when you are at home and want a cigarette, ask all your non smoking guests to go and stand outside whilst you have one.

 

 

[/quote][:D] Absolutely.  It's your house - do what you like in it. B*gg*er the guests!  I haven't smoked for a while but anybody is welcome to have a fag in my home whenever they wish.  Sorry this has nothing to do with supermarkets but you touched my funny bone, Peter.  I take it Velcorin was at work when he typed that though?

[Simon]

I can put up with the shops being closed Sundays and over lunchtime, but it drives me crazy to wait 8 deep at 1 of the 3 checkouts that are actually open even though there are 20 available.