In administration

[@Lee]

As some people know I'm currently in Germany and here's a few observations.
People here do buy things via the internet. 
DPD, UPS, DHL and Hermes vans are on the streets constantly delivering.
Yet, High Street shops aren't closing down here. 
There are NO PARKING CHARGES. There are certain restrictions, yes but you DO NOT PAY.
Towns accept that to generate income you need people to come to those towns.
They recognise that fees put people off.
It seems to me that the death of the high street in the UK has less to do with the internet and more to do with local council greed.

EDIT. 
I've yet to see a 'mega chain' here. I've not seen a single Starbucks. McDonald's is rare as is KFC and BK.
There are, however loads of smaller independent cafe's, Bars, bistros etc etc.
Maybe, just MAYBE, they pay their taxes rather than avoiding them a' la Starbucks etc.

 

[dg360]

3 minutes ago, Lee01 said:

As some people know I'm currently in Germany and here's a few observations.
People here do buy things via the internet. 
DPD, UPS, DHL and Hermes vans are on the streets constantly delivering.
Yet, High Street shops aren't closing down here. 
There are NO PARKING CHARGES. There are certain restrictions, yes but you DO NOT PAY.
Towns accept that to generate income you need people to come to those towns.
They recognise that fees put people off.
It seems to me that the death of the high street in the UK has less to do with the internet and more to do with local council greed.

 

I'm not sure it's even greed. It turns out that putting people who's only talents are owning a terrible suit and liking the sound of their own voice in charge, doesn't end in success.  

 

We should have 1/10th of the councillors we have but pay 10x as much and make it a prestigious job that is accountable for their performance.  It should be an aspiration to become a councillor not something people mainly do in retirement.

Sigh. I'll put my soapbox away now.

[Ootohere]

Germany, they really look after the elderly.   None as blind as those that will not see.

 

 

[@Lee]

5 minutes ago, Skoffski said:

Germany, they really look after the elderly.   None as blind as those that will not see.

 

 

Well done, Georgeski. You've managed to turn a discussion about shopping into a debate about pensions in Germany. (slow hand clap)
IF you want to go down that route, carry on otherwise, troll elsewhere.

[moley]

Lee01, I was working near Erfurt for a week last November and on a couple of evenings we drove into the centre of Erfurt and the only parking option was the parking in the car parks, where you had to pay.

 

Germany has:

157 Starbucks 

1480 MacDonalds. the UK has 1249

692 Burger Kings

1968 KFC's

 

 

[Ootohere]

@Lee01

Those that worked all there lives must have added to the countries wealth has it not, where or who is the income from tax going to?

So like companies going into Administration and workers and those that should have pensions they paid into, it is the same with those that built up a country, 

those that deserve some standard of life.

 

Maybe get back visiting Glasgow more often, try to get a parking space at the Out of Town but still in Glasgow Shopping Malls and the likes.

Silverburn, Braehead etc.

Death of the High Street and death of some Department Stores,  but shopping is not dead and the whole country is not suffering from austerity.

Edited 23 January, 2019 by Skoffski

[@Lee]

12 minutes ago, moley said:

Lee01, I was working near Erfurt for a week last November and on a couple of evenings we drove into the centre of Erfurt and the only parking option was the parking in the car parks, where you had to pay.

 

Germany has:

157 Starbucks 

1480 MacDonalds. the UK has 1249

692 Burger Kings

1968 KFC's

 

 

Maybe you didn't understand the signage?
Like I said, I've yet to see a Starbucks and I've travelled a bit here now.
Maybe they're all centred around Paderborn!

[Ootohere]

^^^ None as blind as will not see. Or is just not going to look too hard because that does not fit with their line of patter.

 

Even pricier_ Starbucks to make German outlets chicer together with Amrest.mhtml

Edited 23 January, 2019 by Skoffski

[moley]

6 minutes ago, Lee01 said:

Maybe you didn't understand the signage?

I was with one of my German colleagues, he was driving and he said we can only park in the car parks. 

[@Lee]

1 minute ago, Skoffski said:

^^^ None as blind as will not see. Or is just not going to look too hard because that does not fit with their line of patter.

 

 

14 minutes ago, moley said:

I was with one of my German colleagues, he was driving and he said we can only park in the car parks. 

Maybe Erfurt is really special then? I can drive into Hamburg, one of the biggest cities in Germany, and park for free. 

[Ootohere]

Germany is good at getting in the taxes, well maybe eventually.

http://bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-40199259

 

[Aspman]

12 hours ago, Lee01 said:

It seems to me that the death of the high street in the UK has less to do with the internet and more to do with local council greed.
 

 

I can't defend the actions and choice of all council but I think this needs some context (at least from a scottish context).

 

Councils (or Local Authorities) get funding from a few sources. Council tax, local income streams (car parking, special bin uplifts, licensing etc) and central government grants.

 

The majority of money comes from central government.

 

Now central gov (inc Scottish Parliament) has cut the money it awards to Councils. It may say it has increased it but that generally is a tricksy statment since central government will often ringfence additional payments to meet specifical policy desires. Usually relating to schools.

School budgets make up about a third of the total budget. So the other two thirds of the budget must take the full hit of any cuts.

Now councils do lots of things and may things are life and death. But budgets are down more than 10% over the last 2yr.

 

Parliament keep pushing new policy requirements onto councils without providing any funding for those new tasks. A small example. the Scottish Gov wants councils to accredit their computer systems to a standard it has decided is good. But Scottish councils already have to accredit to a UK standard that is 99% the same as that proposed by SG. SG insist on doing theirs as well because they want to be seen to be independent from UK gov. Cost in the region of £10-30k (x32) for zero benefit to residents. SG gets to make some soundbites about how good they are.

 

Now Councils could raise revenue by increasing council tax. Except Parliament has promised to cut the budget award if Councils increase council tax making them worse off overall.

 

So that leaves the local income streams, parking charges, fines, license costs etc. It's the only way left to make up the gap.

 

Central gov is passing the  buck on austerity so they don't look bad. So consider every time you see an mp making a big statement about weekly bin collections etc remember that in general bin collection have been reduced as a budget saving becasue of cuts approved by this same MP.

 

 

 

 

 

[shyVRS245]

So even the mighty Santander are to close some UK banks laying people off. They employ some 1,900 office workers at Head Office at Carlton Park, Leicestershire, this I know because I used to work there. In the space of about 10 years their UK customer base grew rapidly from 1 million to over 4 million today and profits were huge, whilst other banks struggled, this made the UK a real gold mine to the big bosses based in Madrid. More a case this time of greedy bankers in Spain behind this decision and not shrinking profit levels in the UK.

[Ootohere]

We keep throwing 'expenses' towards some Ex MP's that leave politics to spend more time with their families, or that just do not get re-elected, but like it to be in London.

http://theferret.scot/peers-scotland-costs-rise-reform  Nice hourly rate for them. But then its not wages, just money to appear.

 

[gadgetman]

This is about companies struggling or in administration. 

 

There's plenty of other continuing threads to vent about MPs etc in 

[shyVRS245]

40 minutes ago, gadgetman said:

This is about companies struggling or in administration. 

 

There's plenty of other continuing threads to vent about MPs etc in 

To be fair it's early dementia.

[Sad555]

Thought lee might have removed his blinkers when arriving but it appears he still has them on or found a new more expensive pair

[Ootohere]

Oddbins call in the administrators.

[gadgetman]

Just now, Skoffski said:

Oddbins call in the administrators.

How many times in the last 10 years is that now? 

[shyVRS245]

8 minutes ago, Skoffski said:

Oddbins call in the administrators.

Perhaps they would have had more luck with a name change to ODDBALLS once LEE01 had given it the all clear on copyright grounds.

[KenONeill]

44 minutes ago, gadgetman said:

How many times in the last 10 years is that now? 

I dunno, but I think the administrators have their own spaces in the Oddbins head office car park!

[CWARD]

I didn’t even know Oddbins were still in existence

[Chris]

Sofa.com has been bought by Mike Ashley today. With all the companies he owns / has shared in I can see him moving them all inside the HoF / Debenhams (when he buys them!) And having a one stop shop. Games, homeware, bikes, sports, clothing, everything under one roof. 

[Ootohere]

Dundee base firm McGill , 450 staff, 200 in Dundee and the rest in Edinburgh & Dundee.

[@Lee]

1 hour ago, Chris said:

Sofa.com has been bought by Mike Ashley today. With all the companies he owns / has shared in I can see him moving them all inside the HoF / Debenhams (when he buys them!) And having a one stop shop. Games, homeware, bikes, sports, clothing, everything under one roof. 

Yeah, that model's working well for JLP isn't it