The West End of Glasgow is the latest area to feel the nudge of Tesco creep. Britain's biggest supermarket chain plans to build a 24-hour superstore, 900 student flats and nearly 600 parking spaces in a development at the southern end of Byres Road. As in other parts of Scotland, the proposed development has aroused local opposition.
The West End of Glasgow is the latest area to feel the nudge of Tesco creep. Britain's biggest supermarket chain plans to build a 24-hour superstore, 900 student flats and nearly 600 parking spaces in a development at the southern end of Byres Road. As in other parts of Scotland, the proposed development has aroused local opposition.
Tesco has not reached the dizzy heights in food and white goods retailing by offending shoppers. But its muscle is increasingly called into question, a fact which the supermarket giant is well aware of. Plans further to expand in Inverness, where Tesco already owns three of the four big supermarkets, have been scaled down. The giant chain sells up to one billion litres of fresh milk each year and, in the wake of a campaign to give put-upon dairy farmers a fairer price for their product, it announced producers would be paid about 4p a litre more. Tesco has also sought to demonstrate its community credentials by working with Renfrewshire Council to rebuild and regenerate the town centre in Linwood, at present run-down and of little value as a community or shopping resource. No-holds-barred supermarket projects are no longer enough. There must be strings atttached that bring a wider benefit.
According to protesters, the prospect of a student village in the neighbourhood of Glasgow's biggest university is not enough of a quid to go with the quo. The area is home to a vibrant independent retail sector whose success is borne out by its popularity (the same goes for the farmers' market). Such outlets help give areas a distinctive character. Could they survive alongside a Tesco behemoth driving down prices across the board? The gamble would not be worth taking if the answer were no.
