Tesco: 22% price reduction a sham

Rebelheart

Is anybody listening to Philip Boucher Hayes on RTÉ Radio 1 Drivetime at the moment (16.35-1645, Thursday 14 May)?

It is truly fascinating, and is bound to be politically explosive.

Some of the main points are:

* Tesco's actual price decrease is 8%, not 22% as claimed by Tesco's chief executive, Tony Keohane, several times (he played the interviews with Tony Keohane).

* That 8% decrease is in fact only a decrease on Tesco's 10% plus price increase in its stores since Christmas.

* Tesco has now approached all Irish suppliers demanding a 20% decrease in their prices.

* While Tesco has claimed Irish suppliers would not be affected by the "decrease", all Irish suppliers have reported that almost overnight Tesco has reduced the shelf space for Irish produce

* In 1997 when Tesco entered the Irish market, Richard Bruton, who was minister for Enterprise, signed an agreement with Tesco whereby Tesco committed themselves to purchasing a huge amount of Irish products. There was no attempt by the Irish government to renew this agreement in 2002. This is certainly going to be called for now.

* Tesco refused to respond to any of the report or defend its position.

Paul Cullen's article in today Irish Times covers all of this more fully: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0514/1224246463054.html


This is one of the best pieces of investigative journalism in years. Well done, RTÉ and The Irish Times. We need much more on this.

Captain-America

Bastards.

Ann22

No way! I used to shop in Dunnes but was really struggling to keep my grocery bill down to the stage where I was counting the number of dinners I'd need to buy for the week so for the past 6mths I've been shopping in Sainsbury's. My fridge and freezer has been full for less money than I was spending in Dunnes.
Last week however I shopped in Tesco in the Long walk shopping centre to see how it worked out. It turned out I got a grand load of shopping for €109. Was surprised. I was careful enough about what I put in the trolley though, I wasn't throwing stuff willy nilly into it the way you can up north.

admiralofthefleet

aldi or lidl is where its at

dsmythy

I'm starting not to like Tesco very much.

TheZohanS

Ann22 wrote: »

It turned out I got a grand load of shopping for €109.

Wow that's a saving of €891....impressive..

prendy

Rebelheart wrote: »

Is anybody listening to Philip Boucher Hayes on RTÉ Radio 1 Drivetime at the moment (16.35-1645, Thursday 14 May)?

It is truly fascinating, and is bound to be politically explosive.

Some of the main points are:

* Tesco's actual price decrease is 8%, not 22% as claimed by Tesco's chief executive, Tony Keohane, several times (he played the interviews with Tony Keohane).

* That 8% decrease is in fact only a decrease on Tesco's 10% plus price increase in its stores since Christmas.

* Tesco has now approached all Irish suppliers demanding a 20% decrease in their prices.

* While Tesco has claimed Irish suppliers would not be affected by the "decrease", all Irish suppliers have reported that almost overnight Tesco has reduced the shelf space for Irish produce

* In 1997 when Tesco entered the Irish market, Richard Bruton, who was minister for Enterprise, signed an agreement with Tesco whereby Tesco committed themselves to purchasing a huge amount of Irish products. There was no attempt by the Irish government to renew this agreement in 2002. This is certainly going to be called for now.

* Tesco refused to respond to any of the report or defend its position.

Paul Cullen's article in today Irish Times covers all of this more fully: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0514/1224246463054.html


This is one of the best pieces of investigative journalism in years. Well done, RTÉ and The Irish Times. We need much more on this.

go to the consumes issues forum and look at the tesco threads, they do this constantly. raise prices before a drop.

On the irish goods issue: its a disgrace, they are going to put alot of small suppliers out of business. Unfortunatly there isnt alot that can be done as EU competition law means the Govt cant favour our own produce.

mike65

Lets all burn Tesco down! Yay!

/zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

admiralofthefleet

dsmythy wrote: »

I'm starting not to like Tesco very much.

ive gone off them completely, in the space of one year their bum wad has gone from €2.09 to €2.90 for 12 rolls of economy

Rebelheart

Boucher-Hayes was saying that Dunnes and the rest of them are already following Tesco's lead and that the suppliers he spoke with are now livid about the claims Tesco is making about its reductions with the suppliers contending that the claims are simply designed to squeeze Irish suppliers further out of the market. Boucher-Hayes said while some suppliers are big enough to take the pressure by reducing staff etc, many will not.

Mary Wilson, the presenter, wanted to know who the suppliers were but Boucher-Hayes said that the only reason they were talking to him was on condition of anonymity. They were not just afraid of Tesco but that if they are seen to be causing "trouble" for one major retailer, no other retailer would want to risk giving them business.

You should be able to listen to the Boucher-Hayes report here: http://www.rte.ie/radio1/drivetime/

Celticfire

TheZohan wrote: »

Wow that's a saving of €801....impressive..

Your wit is matched only by your inability to subtract correctly,:P check again...

Rebelheart

admiralofthefleet wrote: »

ive gone off them completely, in the space of one year their bum wad has gone from €2.09 to €2.90 for 12 rolls of economy

And those Mach 3 shaving blades were a massive 66% cheaper last December in Newry than they were in the Tesco Clearwater on the same day (I dropped in for milk on the way back). Stomach-turning stuff.

Fratton Fred

the trouble is, we can't find out how much Dunnes are ripping usoff by because they don't file accounts. the nearest i could find is this from 2006

http://archives.tcm.ie/businesspost/2006/12/10/story19512.asp

Dunnes Stores is an unlimited company and is not obliged to file accounts, but it is generally accepted to be one of the ten largest companies in the country. In 2001, the company had sales of €2.2 billion and that figure has undoubtedly increased since then. When Ben Dunne was bought out of the business in 1994, it was valued at about €760 million. The only insight into the company’s financial position comes in the North, where Dunnes files accounts for its 24 Northern stores.

According to its most recent accounts, it made a pre-tax profit of £39 million (€57.5 million) from sales of £231 million (€341million).That equates to a profit of €2.4 million per store. Based on those numbers, the company’s 110 stores in the Republic could be generating over €265 million in pre-tax profits every year. Furthermore, the company owns most of its properties, giving it access to one of the biggest retail property portfolios in the state.

Of course, we will ignore the fact Superquin is in a whole heap of **** as well, so maybe the supermarkets are in a lot of trouble.

I liked this bit from the OPs link to the IT as well

Meanwhile, Fianna Fáil TD Ned O’Keeffe said Tesco should leave Ireland. “What has Tesco offered us since they came over to Ireland?” said Mr O’Keeffe, in a statement issued before the company’s layoffs announcement.

“All we’ve seen is them exploiting Irish suppliers and continually pushing the prices down. They have been seeking price cuts of up to 20 per cent recently from Irish suppliers or else they will simply remove these products from their shelves. That’s disgraceful carry on.”

Mr O’Keeffe claimed Tesco shelves were being filled “to breaking point” with cheaper, British goods rather than higher-quality Irish products. This would have a huge impact on the Irish food production sector and, in the longer term, on Irish diets.

So, Tesco should bugger off and we should all pay more. Anyone would think Ned O'Keefe worked for Dairygold or something........

tatabubbly

Asda over the border........ the only way to go.. still way cheaper than the price reductions... i only buy whatever fresh bread, milk, fruit i need in tesco, rest goes to asda i'm afraid.

Bummer

TheZohan wrote: »

Wow that's a saving of €801....impressive..

Would that not be €891 of a saving??:eek:

Captain-America

They're like the Microsoft of the retail market. Completely abusing their position as market leader.

TheZohanS

Bummer wrote: »

Would that not be €891 of a saving??:eek:

It would, now thats real value.

Rebelheart

prendy wrote: »

On the irish goods issue: its a disgrace, they are going to put alot of small suppliers out of business. Unfortunatly there isnt alot that can be done as EU competition law means the Govt cant favour our own produce.

That's what I would have thought also but Boucher-Hayes made a point of saying that the government did, in fact, "interfere in the market" back in 1997 and that agreement lasted until it ran out in 2002. Perhaps they dressed it up some other way, but Boucher-Hayes was very clear and detailed about the Tesco-Irish government deal in 1997, and that it was designed to defend Irish producers following Tesco's takeover of Quinnsworth and Crazy Prices.


Tesco, in fairness, has been much better to the Irish food industry than Marks & Spensers which has done virtually nothing for indigenous industry. But it seems increasingly clear that Tesco is aiming to replicate Marks & Spensers in this regard. That will not be good for Ireland or Irish employment.

TheZohanS

Celticfire wrote: »

Your wit is matched only by your inability to subtract correctly,:P check again...

Ah thanks. Did you make that one up all on your own?

Ann22

Now when I think of it I saw that list Tesco sent around of their price reductions, it said 80 Punjana teabags were reduced from €2.99 to €1.58. Well c'mere 'til I tell yiz, Dunnes had them last week at €1.98 so no bleedin' way were they ever €2.99!! If they were, it's daylight robbery:mad:. Now I'm mad with Mr Tesco too.

kraggy

I'm refusing to shop there anymore.

Their Tesco Value products have increased by 30+% in the last few months.

They're not codding me when they announce price reductions based on prices that were increased in the months beforehand.

Pricks.

connundrum

Old news I would have thought? I heard about these facts and figures on George Hook's show on Monday afaik.

Oh and for whatever you think of Tesco, they are still a massive employer, buyer and contributor to the economy. They are as big as they are because we all liked the low prices that they were offering back over the last few years, and they will continue to do well into the future, mainly due to the fact that the majority of shoppers will see them as the best value/choice provider.

I personally divide my shopping between Tesco, Aldi and Superquinn, mainly for convenience reasons. I try to buy the Irish products where I can, but I understand that my every little may not help the overall cause.

Rebelheart

Fratton Fred wrote: »

So, Tesco should bugger off and we should all pay more. Anyone would think Ned O'Keefe worked for Dairygold or something........

In fairness, Ned O'Keefe is the same Ned O'Keefe who came out in 1995 to call for the movie Babe (about a cute pig) to be banned because it would negatively affect the Irish pig industry. Some political stunts are unforgetable.

snubbleste

Ann22 wrote: »

Now when I think of it I saw that list Tesco sent around of their price reductions, it said 80 Punjana teabags were reduced from €2.99 to €1.58. Well c'mere 'til I tell yiz, Dunnes had them last week at €1.98 so no bleedin' way were they ever €2.99!! If they were, it's daylight robbery:mad:. Now I'm mad with Mr Tesco too.

They are normally €2.99
Dunnes had them on 33% off offer last week

meglome

In town now there a Tesco, Dunne, Lidl and Aldi all right next to each other. I buy almost nothing in Tesco it's so expensive. I buy meat on Moore street and veg in Aldi, saved a fortune.

Caoimhín

Now they have gone and invaded Denmark!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20IpSch8sSk

Topmanager

Give Tesco a break,they create alot of employment in this country.It is good to see them put other retailers under pressure to match them.Competion is what is needed to get this economy back up again.

MikeC101

Fratton Fred wrote: »

So, Tesco should bugger off and we should all pay more. Anyone would think Ned O'Keefe worked for Dairygold or something........

:D:D

Celticfire

TheZohan wrote: »

Ah thanks. Did you make that one up all on your own?

It's a variation of a classic, so I can't take all the credit

Biggins

Heard about this latest news on the radio.
People in my own home town copped it within a day or two. They went in to buy something and suddenly discovered that their wanted items had gone up a Euro or two each - if for no other reason than to let Tesco claim they they have dropped their prices on other food stuff.
Its a disgrace - pure and simple. They are treating the Irish public as if they are all just stupid.

Sorry Tesco - get stuffed. We going elsewhere now on for our shopping.

K-9

Fecking Tesco exploiting Irish workers and Irish suppliers.

I'm off to Walmart Asda.

Captain-America

Topmanager wrote: »

Give Tesco a break,they create alot of employment in this country.It is good to see them put other retailers under pressure to match them.Competion is what is needed to get this economy back up again.

Not when the profit goes to an British based compnay.

K-9

Captain-America wrote: »

Not when the profit goes to an British based compnay.

Like Multi Nationals you mean?

Topmanager

Captain-America wrote: »

Not when the profit goes to an British based compnay.

What about the likes of Dell, Intel, Microsoft,who all make big profits in Ireland and send it back over to America.I dont see a trend on here about these companies keeping their profits in Ireland.

Is it just because Tesco is a british comany?????

Biggins

I think some are diverging away from the real source of the anger towards Tescos and they being exposed as liars.

Their new current promotion states new low, low prices across the board in regards to their foodstuffs.
Its been discovered that this not the case and in fact they are
1. Just paying around with the finance figures and...
2. Passing any cuts onto other items of foodstuffs that they don't advertise (convient or what!).

The current situation has nothing to do with be it a British company, multi-national company or a bloomin' corner shop.
...Its about prices folks, plain and simple.

OPENROAD

Biggins wrote: »

...Its about prices folks, plain and simple.

Exactly and I for one will shop where I can get the cheapest prices wherther that be an Irish company or Tesco or whoever.

Biggins

OPENROAD wrote: »

Exactly and I for one will shop where I can get the cheapest prices whether that be an Irish company or an overseas firm or on the net.

Same here.
Sadly though Tescos are just currently taking the pee by making the public think they are making a saving by advertising their lower products while passing the cost of the cuts to other food items, you might not beware they have actually raised.

OPENROAD

Biggins wrote: »

Same here.
Sadly though Tescos are just currently taking the pee by making the public think they are making a saving by advertising their lower products while passing the cost of the cuts to other food items, you might not beware they have actually raised.

True.


I would like to think people are more astute though, they certainly should be when it comes to shopping, I am not loyal to any one supermarket and mix my shopping between them to try and maximise savings. It seems at last we are seeing price differences on branded goods, I might be mistaken but I was always under the impression that branded goods tended to be priced the same between different supermerkets in the past. Supermarkets are still too expensive here though, Ihave even found Waitrose in London to offer better value.

K-9

OPENROAD wrote: »

True.


I would like to think people are more astute though, they certainly should be when it comes to shopping, I am not loyal to any one supermarket and mix my shopping between them to try and maximise savings. It seems at last we are seeing price differences on branded goods, I might be mistaken but I was always under the impression that branded goods tended to be priced the same between different supermerkets in the past. Supermarkets are still too expensive here though, Ihave even found Waitrose in London to offer better value.

Would be very little difference on branded goods alright, which is why Tesco are importing the foreign supplied goods. They can get it cheaper than buying from Irish distributers. People have to be smart and buy the cheap goods in Tesco and their over priced stuff elsewhere. If Tesco are only 8% cheaper overall it shouldn't affect canny shoppers!

As for Irish suppliers being asked to drop prices, how to people think these rip off prices we moan about are going to drop?

phasers

This is crazy, and it's great that it's being brought to the public's attention. Tesco are treating the Irish people like they're complete morons. And not only that, their stores are filthy and full of rude, surly staff. Tesco seem to have no positive points at the moment, who is shopping there?

tech77

TheZohan wrote: »

Wow that's a saving of €801....impressive..

Man, i wanna thank and fail this post (the original one^) at the same time.
"Typo"

Heyes

connundrum wrote: »

Old news I would have thought? I heard about these facts and figures on George Hook's show on Monday afaik.

Oh and for whatever you think of Tesco, they are still a massive employer, buyer and contributor to the economy. They are as big as they are because we all liked the low prices that they were offering back over the last few years, and they will continue to do well into the future, mainly due to the fact that the majority of shoppers will see them as the best value/choice provider.

I personally divide my shopping between Tesco, Aldi and Superquinn, mainly for convenience reasons. I try to buy the Irish products where I can, but I understand that my every little may not help the overall cause.

I dont think so anymore, what with the redundancies in head office, also in the past when they said they were creating huge jobs when they opened a new central distribution centre, they failed to state that they let go everyone involved in there other warehouses and made them re apply.

Remember they ll only tell you what you want to hear, more often than not there is a negative behind what there saying !

Heyes

phasers wrote: »

This is crazy, and it's great that it's being brought to the public's attention. Tesco are treating the Irish people like they're complete morons. And not only that, their stores are filthy and full of rude, surly staff. Tesco seem to have no positive points at the moment, who is shopping there?

To be honest it will probable be blown under the rador as quickly as it arrived, alas they also end up winning the game !

OPENROAD

Heyes wrote: »

I dont think so anymore, what with the redundancies in head office, also in the past when they said they were creating huge jobs when they opened a new central distribution centre, they failed to state that they let go everyone involved in there other warehouses and made them re apply.

What do you you consider a massive employer?

Heyes

OPENROAD wrote: »

What do you you consider a massive employer?

Im not saying they havent been good in the amount of employment they have provided, but all im saying is there not as good as they like to portray and they have provided A LOT of redundancies over the last few years.

OPENROAD

Heyes wrote: »

Im not saying they havent been good in the amount of employment they have provided, but all im saying is there not as good as they like to portray and they have provided A LOT of redundancies over the last few years.

The fact is they are still a big employer in the country and of course this results in secondary employment also. Many firms worldwide are engaged in huge redundacies at the moment, just look at BT today.

Heyes

OPENROAD wrote: »

The fact is they are still a big employer in the country and of course this results in secondary employment also. Many firms worldwide are engaged in huge redundacies at the moment, just look at BT today.

Yes i understand that however its important to note the previous posts with the demand that tesco are expecting from there suppliers : ie : 20% reduction in costs.

If the supplier doesnt do this, they are blacklisted and all lines are discontinued and supplied through another sourse most likely the UK. This has resulted in redundancies in suppliers, distributors, warehousing etc.

I understand they have provided a number of jobs over the years, but you dont read about the amount of suppliers that have closed down over the last few years due to Tesco unrealistic demands. This has obviously gone through the roof over the last few months and been brought to the public view but note this has been going on years its only because of the big R thats its been made more public !

ejmaztec

Hasn't Dunnes been carving up the workforce in recent months as well, with redundancies, shortening working hours and closing shops? If our local SuperValu is anything to go buy, they've also ditched a few.

Heyes

ejmaztec wrote: »

Hasn't Dunnes been carving up the workforce in recent months as well, with redundancies, shortening working hours and closing shops? If our local SuperValu is anything to go buy, they've also ditched a few.

there demands and cuts are not to the same scale as Tesco.

OPENROAD

Heyes wrote: »

Yes i understand that however its important to note the previous posts with the demand that tesco are expecting from there suppliers : ie : 20% reduction in costs.

If the supplier doesnt do this, they are blacklisted and all lines are discontinued and supplied through another sourse most likely the UK. This has resulted in redundancies in suppliers, distributors, warehousing etc.

I understand they have provided a number of jobs over the years, but you dont read about the amount of suppliers that have closed down over the last few years due to Tesco unrealistic demands. This has obviously gone through the roof over the last few months and been brought to the public view but note this has been going on years its only because of the big R thats its been made more public !

If Tesco can source elsewhere cheaper,as a business I would expect them to do so or should they just stick to the same supplier. To be honest I don't know a whole lot about this sector, why are Irish suppliers not in a position to redcue their costs to Tesco?

OPENROAD

Heyes wrote: »

there demands and cuts are not to the same scale as Tesco.

Could you provide actual figures so we can compare the two.