What if Tesco hadn't bought Quinnsworth?

its_steve116

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123650721#Comment_123650721

Mullingar receipt from 1993. (I wasn't born yet.)

Hibernicis

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123651119#Comment_123651119

It was a mix of location and legacy. A number of the Crazy Prices stores started life as branches of Albert Gubey's "3 Guys" chain of 13 (?) bare bones "cardboard cartons on the floor" discount stores in the 70s. He sold these to Tesco (Mk 1) who later sold to H Williams. When H Williams went bust in 1986 a number of the stores were taken over by Quinnsworth and some of these were subsequently rebranded as Crazy Prices. Overall Crazy Prizes was an odd mix of some large and soulless warehouses and smaller dingy kips. PSL wanted a clear differentiation between these and the more mid-to-premium image that it wanted for it's Quinnsworth branded stores, especially as it was aiming to go upmarket with the likes of the "flagship" branch in Merrion and later Bloomfields in Dun Laoghaire.

its_steve116

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123651222#Comment_123651222

Yeah, but did Quinnsworth have the animatronic monkeys and elephants in the fruit and veg section? 😂

supereurope

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123651119#Comment_123651119

Looking at that list of stores, some Crazy Prices supermarkets were older Quinnsworth stores (the Waterford CP in Lisduggan was a fairly early QW) that perhaps weren't profitable enough to justify bringing up to standards or supermarkets that QW acquired through takeovers, so wouldn't have been originally built to QW requirements (the Roxboro CP opened as a Lipton's, Clonmel was a Five Star, Dundrum/Sandyford was originally a H Williams), so I think (thankfully) there was more to it than just "Crazy Prices was the name Quinnsworth used for poor areas."

supereurope

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123651136#Comment_123651136

Trying to work out the history of Bray supermarkets is terribly confusing because there was so much takeover activity in the town. There was Power which bought Quinnsworth, Lipton's which was bought by Five Star which was in turn bought by Quinnsworth, 3 Guys which was bought by Tesco and then Quinnsworth etc.

I remember reading about Bloomfields opening, would have been around the summer of 1997 IIRC, it was announced the previous summer I think and still opened under that name despite the takeover in between. I wonder if the Bloomfields brand would have been rolled out further to more upmarket areas if Tesco hadn't come on the scene. I imagine the Merrion Centre supermarket would have become one.

Hibernicis

Tesco bought PLS/QW/CP in March 97. Bloomfields opened in May 97. So it was a PSL/Quinnsworth concept that opened on Tesco's watch. The next similar occurrence was the PSL/QW planned new store in Golden Island Athlone which opened as a Tesco store in October 1997, the first store to have the Tesco name over the door since Tesco MK1's departure in the 80s. And it actually looked pretty plastic and cheap when compared to Bloomfields store. The rebranding of all other QW and CP stores to Tesco followed on from this.

There was talk in the trade in the 90s about Quinnsworth going after Superquinn at the premium tier. Merrion was their first shot and did very well for them. Bloomfields was I think a soft launch for premium level sub-brand. I don't think the name was important, it was more to test the range, layout, ambience etc etc. It was opposite end of the scale to the other Quinnsworth store in Dun Laoghaire at the time, which was just 500m away in the basement of Dun Laoghaire Shopping Centre (where PSL's Gresham House HQ was located). This all coincided with the Dick Reeves leaving PSL in 1996 and his replacement by Maurice Pratt. Reeves, having been very successful during his time at the top in PSL/QW, was poached/headhunted "back" by Dunnes to become MD and join the board, filling the vacancy left by Ben's departure some years earlier - Heffernan wanted to shift Dunnes upmarket, and wanted Reeves to manage it now that Ben was well out of the way. Quinnsworth's market share had grown considerable during Reeve's time, and Dunne's had diminished. Heffernan wanted him to change that.

RoTelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123651119#Comment_123651119

A few years ago on Boards we ponder why Finglas had a Superquinn, and of all of the shops the musgraves should have rebranded it was possible the Finglas shops, snobbery is everywhere. (might have been on this thread?)

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123651119#Comment_123651119

You didn't have to be told it, when your local Quinnsworth became a Crazy Prices (as ours did) it was pretty obvious what they thought of you

its_steve116

So, which CP stores were Quinnsworth beforehand and which were Crazy Prices all the way through to the Tesco takeover?

Glaceon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123652706#Comment_123652706

Ballyfermot was converted to Crazy Prices in the early 90s.

supereurope

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123652706#Comment_123652706

The supermarket at the Janelle SC in Finglas was the fifth Crazy Prices to open, but the first "new build" one, the previous four (Kilbarrack, Dundrum, Ballymun and Dundalk) were all Quinnsworth conversions. As far as I know, the CPs in The Square, Omni Park in Santry, Ballinasloe, Portlaoise and in the Longwalk in Dundalk were all new builds as well.

AndrewJRenko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123651578#Comment_123651578

"Dundrum/Sandyford was originally a H Williams"

On Sandyford Road? Are you sure?

The H Williams was up beside the church, opposite Moreen.

supereurope

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123653284#Comment_123653284

Absolutely…opened by H Williams back in the 1960s, then Quinnsworth bought it in 1982. Then a few months after that, Quinnsworth sold its Balally supermarket to H Williams, that's the one across from the church that is now a SuperValu.

its_steve116

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123635643#Comment_123635643

Yeah, and what would have happened do you reckon had he remained with Roches?

its_steve116

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123653008#Comment_123653008

...and if this is anything go by I'd imagine the Sandyford one opened shortly afterwards.

https://www.rte.ie/archives/collections/news/21255986-armed-robbery-sandyford/

road_high

I really miss Superquinn- they are a serious void that has never been filled. They were perceived as being expensive but in todays context would be great value as we pay top dollar for average quality - what a shame they ended up in the destructive hands of Musgraves instead of a serious premium player like Waitrose. Was in one of their stores in England recently and made sad we don’t have that option. Dunnes stores try but not the same level

supereurope

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123780651#Comment_123780651

I lived in the UK for 16 years, and I miss Waitrose. The "fancy" Dunnes branches, like the ones in Bishopstown in Cork come pretty close, and so did M&S, but they've not been the same since Brexit. So many products M&S no longer stock in their Irrish stores.

Waitrose did a deal with Superquinn circa 2003 whereby the latter stocked some Waitrose products, mainly ready meals I recall. It was speculated at the time that perhaps that was Waitrose dipping its toe into the Irish market, and perhaps a takeover of Superquinn could come. It never happened, of course, and with Brexit having changed things so much, the moment has passed for the entry of Waitrose and John Lewis into the Republic of Ireland.

Hotblack Desiato

SuperValu kept the "expensive" part but lost the "quality" part.

road_high

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123782418#Comment_123782418

must surely be a lesson in taking a blue chip brand and running it into the ground. A good number of the ex Superquinn stores have actually shut down since the take over which shows how badly they are being run at a time of increasing population growth

supereurope

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123782418#Comment_123782418

I think the biggest issue with SuperValu is its inconsistency. Some of its supermarkets, like the one in Clonakilty, are fantastic, others are small, rundown and dated. Though you can say that about the other chains too, the new Tesco is Fermoy looks great, but then you've the dark and dingy Paul St shop in the city.

Trampas

I remember quinnsworth before crazy prices in crumlin shopping centre. My memory is rubbish these days but can always remember shops and layouts in the crumlin shopping centre

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123780918#Comment_123780918

I used shop in Waitrose because I missed what I used get from independent butchers/fishmongers/veg grocers in Ireland.

It was the only supermarket in England that wasn't selling utterly tasteless bland shte. Funny enough "budget" brand Morrisons came second.

M&S is a con in my opinion. Trading off a reputation of upmarket quality long dead.

road_high

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123782971#Comment_123782971

ironically it’s the ones run directly by musgraves that are rubbish. Some amazing franchise ones if you are lucky enough to be close to one alright

its_steve116

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123783050#Comment_123783050

Is the one in Newcastle, County Dublin a franchise one or run directly by Musgrave?

road_high

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123783061#Comment_123783061

not sure. Usually see a family group name attached to franchisee ones like Petitts or Buckleys or whatever

blackwhite

Old Superquinns are typically owned directly by Musgraves.

Other than that, nearly all others are franchisee owned and operated

supereurope

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123775472#Comment_123775472

Sorry, when I said "Dundrum" above, I meant the Sandyford Rd one. The H Williams there was always referred to as being Dundrum as opposed to Sandyford, and with the former site now the Dundrum Town Centre so I wouldn't think of that area as Sandyford. I think that Dundrum/Sandyford CP was one of the first CPs to open in the Republic. Kilbarrack was first circa 1983, then Ballymun and Dundrum/Sandyford sometime after (no idea of actual date.)

road_high

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123651210#Comment_123651210

Just me or does some of this look really expensive in punts and 1993? Some of that wouldn’t be much dearer in the likes of Aldi Lidl today…..

L1011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123783906#Comment_123783906

Supermarkets were insanely dear here until the price wars caused by Lidl and Aldi in the early days of the financial crash

Ozymandius2011

Quinnsworth had financial difficulties, and also was owned by a Conglomerate called Associated British Foods (via Power Supermarkets). They may have sold as part of their strategy to divest from non-core assets or focus on other markets. Despite being well known, it struggled with modernising stores and supply-chains to march international competitors efficiency.

The Groceries Order (1987) which banned below-cost selling was in place until 2005. But in my opinion it may have reduced efficiency. I understand it was introduced as a protectionist measure to stop small retailers being driven out of business. But it also meant Irish retailers were less pressured to optimize supply chains, expand product ranges, or adopt modern retail practices compared to UK or continental European competitors.

I do regret that Quinnsworth no longer exists though.

I do wonder if Brexit had happened back then, would it have been different.