A busy body trade body are looking to introduce a number of changes to the way we buy our beer in supermarkets.
I think I am okay with two of these: loss leaders are usually cheap and crap anyway, or better quality products near the end of their shelf life. Special Offers are all well and good if they are interesting brands, but they tend to be stuff from the big brewers like Greene King or Wells & Young so I am not interested anyway. Both of these sales methods promote bulk buying and the alcohol problems the association are trying to put an end to. The cheapness is also stated to keep customers away from the pubs they are looking to protect.
What I do object to, and what I cannot see the sense in either is the ban on single-unit sales. This amounts to us being unable to buy that single bottle of Brewery X's New Beer. Instead I have to buy a six pack, or even more. Where is the sense in this? It is not promoting sensible drinking, nor is it going to make me more likely to go to the pub. Surely if I buy six bottles I will drink six bottles. If I buy one bottle I'll drink it and then have five drinks at the pub. Additionally one bottle may cost me £2, six will probably cost me £11. I am happy to pay more for a single unit, and should be allowed to. Again the winner is the supermarket, not the pub.
Perhaps I'm missing the point here. Can someone please enlighten me as to the sense of this suggestion?
3 comments:
Eh? This is truly bizarre. Yes, the supermarkets selling cheap shit like Carlsberg and Fosters at loss leader prices DOES fuel binge drinking. I speak from experience - as a student, I remember we got out of our tree frequently when we unexpectedly came across an amazing offer on lager and took advantage. Single bottles and cans are never priced competitively, and anyway how can you binge drink with one bottle?
This will hit those of us who like to experiment with new flavours in beer - which of course includes both you and I, Mark. It will go over the heads of those who just want binge drink, as they're down the other end of the aisle loading up on a bargain case of Stella.
Truly baffling. I'm genuinely annoyed about this.
The only reason i see for bannign single bottle sales is some one realises that people like me want variety and that im not likly to buy a six pack and will thus have to goto the pub more often in order to get variety. However i can not see this ever happening. Craig
Oh I get it: Johnny Tramp has only enough coppers for one tin of Carlsberg Special. Make him buy a tray, that'll stop him.
Now you'll only see tramps in Tesco in groups of 24.
Clean-up in aisle two...
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