Tesco Express leveling mom 'n' pops :o(

[rickschoppers]

Mom and Pop stores will not completely disappear because of a fact already stated, sheer laziness of driving to a Tesco or Big C. They have been greatly affected though and will not stay in business unless they offer products the big supermarkets do not. My wife hops on the motorbike at least three times a day to go down to the corner shop, so if you multiply that by all the villagers it adds up to quite a sum.

Items we buy from the corner shop are chips and goodies that I do not eat, cooking ingredients that the wife does not buy at Tesco or Big C, cold beer when a friend pops by and the occasional liter of gas for the unlicensed motorbike that is used for the frequent trips inside the village. What I do notice is that prices vary and the shops on main roads charge much more than those along the small sois in the village.

I still would not invest in a Mom and Pop shop however.

[DrAndy]

cold beer when a friend pops by

see you at 3pm

[rickschoppers]

^
The corner shop keeps some very cold beer in their VIP section for me so come on over.

[Fluke]

I always shop at 7/11s .
Always have a huge variety of cold drinks .
Always open
Always have stock of various products .
Never over charge .
Always have change (money)
Produce isnt old and you never have to inconvenience the owner by wanting to pay for something and they have to begrudgingly have to get out their armchair and serve you .
7/11 always

[Thormaturge]

I always shop at 7/11s .
Always have a huge variety of cold drinks .
Always open
Always have stock of various products .
Never over charge .
Always have change (money)
Produce isnt old and you never have to inconvenience the owner by wanting to pay for something and they have to begrudgingly have to get out their armchair and serve you .
7/11 always

I think 7-11 is where TE will hit a brick wall in Thailand. It is established, with around 5,000 stores and, through the franchise system, has a central organization that the mom and pop shops don't have. I honestly haven't bought anything from Tesco Lotus or TE for well over a year, but I am in 7-11 daily.

I note Big C are also opening Mini C outlets. Thais like Big C so it is a good way of trading on the name.

Tesco have an uphill battle in Thailand and may well find TE merely takes some of its business away from their larger stores.

[Neverna]

I rarely use Thai mom and pop stores. They tend not to have a big range of products. 7/11 are better IMO. TE has a few more fresh items than 7/11 but there's not much else different.

[DrAndy]

my wife was very happy that a new 7/11 opened just around the corner

[2Prick]

7-Eleven. 4 healthy products to its name the last time I looked.

Mineral water, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds (plain variety) and natural yogurt.

Great selection, LOL.

[CTO]

The quality at normal Tesco's is awful I've found, however oddly Tesco Express (First I used was Ban Dung) is oddly far better.

Either way I don't like them so much, but I use them at times, I moved to the bush to be away from a lot of this stuff and shop from the dirty grungy but fascinating mom 'n pop shops.

Makro is a different biz model, the trader discount is not bad, makes it cheap when buying in bulk as the wife does, she gets a trader card, then at end of month takes the dockets back for another discount.

[Thormaturge]

I was not aware that Tesco was noted for its health foods, or indeed its environmental concerns.

They all sell whatever feeds their bottom line.

[Fluke]

I was not aware that Tesco was noted for its health foods, or indeed its environmental concerns.

They all sell whatever feeds their bottom line.

They sell whatever people want to buy , if people didnt buy unhealthy things, then they wouldnt sell them .
Tescos are not here to dictate to us what we should be buying they are here to serve

[Thormaturge]

I was not aware that Tesco was noted for its health foods, or indeed its environmental concerns.

They all sell whatever feeds their bottom line.

They sell whatever people want to buy , if people didnt buy unhealthy things, then they wouldnt sell them .
Tescos are not here to dictate to us what we should be buying they are here to serve

I agee entirely. My comment was a response to 2prick. The last tine I was stood in line behind someone at a large store (Carrefour I think, before they became Big C) their shopping trolley was full of sugar in every form imaginable.