Voting with our feet
When our first born was young we used to shop at Sainsburys but really struggled to find a trolley with a bady seat that wasn't broken. They also helpfully kept all the ordinary trolleys under cover but the baby trolleys out in the rain. So we wrote and complained. A few days later we got a letter from them saying that all the trolleys were fine and that "We do hope you continue to enjoy shopping at Sainsburys". Given that we'd written to say that we were not enjoying shopping there, the last line was pretty annoying. So we stopped shopping there. Big deal you may think, like Sainsburys care. But let's do the maths. We spend over £100 a week in supermarkets and my son is now 15, so...

£100 x 52 weeks in a year = £5,200 a year that Sainsburys have lost
£5,200 x 15 years that we have boycotted them = £78,000

Yep, Seventy eight thousand pounds and counting. Who says voting with your feet doesn't work.

Fast forward 15 years and Ocado have just written to us following a complaint. Their letter ended, (I kid you not), "We do hope you continue to enjoy shopping with Ocado". Oh dear.
(remoteneeded, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 15:52, 83 replies)

And I can safely say
that Sainsbury's neither noticed nor cared.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:20, closed)

i doubt they could care if they didn't notice?
or summink like that.
but i get what you're saying mrs e.
( blaireau69 , the Cumbrian Travis Bickle., Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:32, closed)

It's like when I used to work in retail and people used to come in a bitch and whine about something that was unreasonable
they used to end it with 'Well I shan't be coming here again then' to which I would reply, 'well we don't want your business anymore you grade A cunt'. Well I would in my head anyway.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:40, closed)

Of course they noticed.
he was one of the many people who drifted away from Sainsbury's, their loss of market share leading them to sharpen up their quality and supply chain over last few years.
( Ring Of Fire A petty, drooling belming butthurt retard., Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:58, closed)

Unfortunately
This is true. My dad had the same problem with Tesco, he left them for a while to Asda and then went back to Tesco because "i'm used to the products"

I myself prefer markets and small traders. Less shit and a friendly service.
( Trollman, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:33, closed)

Yeah.
A company with a turnover in the tens of billions a year will really have been stung by your fifteen year sulk. Stick it to the man. With your undetectably tiny (but righteously angry) little prick.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:39, closed)

So you're saying
we should just roll over and take it then? Yippie, the corporate bastards win. Yes I agree my little protest did little to hurt them, (this thread is "Little Victories", but what if hundreds of people did this? Maybe the population of Egypt should have stayed at home, after all the it's not as if they could bring down a leader...
(remoteneeded, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:56, closed)

You're honestly comparing your petulance over damp trolleys with a popular uprising against a 30 year repressive autocracy?
You're like a pure win goblet filled to the brim with win.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:00, closed)

You know full well
that my 'protest' is nothing compared to what has happened in Egypt. It was an analogy. My point is that one becomes two, becomes four and before you know it people have to sit up and take notice. The humble individual can have a voice and can make a difference.
(remoteneeded, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:25, closed)

Fifteen years and the best you can manage is a mangled Spice Girls lyric?
Fuck, dude. You're the worst revolutionary ever.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:27, closed)

And you're a dickhead
who deliberately misinterprets a well-worded argument in order to make a tired, weak point.
( argyleblanket The man on the roof works for me, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 21:19, closed)

Who the fuck are you?
I mean ... you clearly find me important enough to snipe at out of the blue ... did I do something for your wife that you never managed or something?
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 23:31, closed)

for the record, that's not how you spell 'impotent'.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 3:30, closed)

I'm glad you didn't drag yourself away from your nintendo in the middle of another lonely night to make this gag.

( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 7:49, closed)

hahaha

(The Empress it seems you CAN polish a turd!, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 14:32, closed)

"snipe at out of the blue"
Pot, kettle, dickhead.
( argyleblanket The man on the roof works for me, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 15:03, closed)

I'll take that as a 'yes'.
Give her my regards.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 15:50, closed)

I agree, I don't like Tesco or Asda
so I don't shop there.
However I doubt they are wringing their hands over how they could get me to shop with them.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:01, closed)

This is probably the best thing I've read
/ac
( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:22, closed)

indeed, it's a well-known fact that supermarkets have little or no interest in attracting and retaining customers - hence their near-complete lack of advertising.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:59, closed)

You make an excellent point.
After all, those adverts are clearly aimed specifically at this one individual to coax him back from his fifteen year girlie hissy fit. Every one of them. Costing them a fortune. Silly cunts. Can't they see that the lady's not for turning?
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:02, closed)

they're aimed at him as much as anyone else. Honestly, if your conception of the retail model has somehow passed over the part that reads 'actually, we could really do with selling some of this stuff', you might want to go brush up a little.

No, one customer is unlikely to have much of an impact on any large organisation - but they, unlike you, seem to understand that enough instances of 'one' add up to 'more than one'. This is why massive companies like Vodafone will bend over backwards to keep your contract, even though you're more or less irrelevent to them.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:12, closed)

Thanks for brushing me up. Quite arousing.
It's odd that you should choose vodafone as your example though given that mobile operators famously have the worst customer churn of any comparably sized industry.

I mean ... if I were a horrible cynic I'd almost be tempted to think you were trying to bluster your way into appearing to be some sort of expert on the subject in a slightly needy attempt to back away from the obvious daftness of your previous post. But that can't be right. That would be silly. Clearly you're the big fucking cheese here and I should take my whuppin like a biatch.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:15, closed)

are you suggesting that only industry experts have ever heard of Vodafone? I'm fairly certain that's not the case.

I chose them as an example merely because I recently cancelled my own contract with them fairly recently.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:23, closed)

Yeah momma!
Whup me! Whup me real good!

Wait ... this ain't a whuppin ...

:(

You can't even form a sentence properly. Recently recently? What is this shit?

I'm never coming to this S&M club again. I'm voting with my rubber-clad feet.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:26, closed)

There we go, all better, you can put your toys back in the pram now.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:27, closed)

Fuck off.
This pram is slightly damp. Imma get Che on your ass.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:30, closed)

Yes I remember when I went to renew my vodaphone
contract, which I had had for 12 months and always paid in full and they told me that they would need a deposit of £150. Not for the phone, and they didn't ask the same of Mr Entity even though he had the same contract and history as me. The reason was that I hadn't used the phone enough. It was a fair few years ago and the free minutes and texts were small. Because I had only used my free minutes they decided that I wasn't worth the bother as they weren't making any money from me.

So I went to Orange.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:30, closed)

How dare you challenge his bald assertion with actual facts!
The nerve of some people.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:35, closed)

Yes, anecdotal evidence from someone who can't even get the company name right completely invalidates any suggestion that Vodafone attempt to retain any customers, ever.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:51, closed)

If you're clever here
you'll manage to give people the impression that you're taking this seriously. Oh man. Then the rest of us will have egg on our faces.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:57, closed)

You managed to interpret that from the carefully-obfuscated references in my sig? You really are a paragon of critical reading. You realise you've created more posts on this subject than I have, right?

Oh, on the subject of sigs...


( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 19:10, closed)

Yeah.
And I made the mistake of making my posts amusing rather than keening and needy.

Im doin it rong!
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 19:36, closed)

I'm adding 'amusing' to the long list of concepts with which you appear to be entirely unfamiliar.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 19:56, closed)

ZING!
No ... wait ... that was shit too.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 23:32, closed)

lolroflZINGomgwtfbbq!!!!1!!one!
Being described as 'shit' by someone for whom I have no respect whatsoever leaves me battling a veritable tsunami of complete indifference.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 23:56, closed)

Indifferent enough to reply at midnight and half three on a saturday night.
You're a fucking winner and no mistake.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 7:35, closed)

Yes, I suppose coming in from the pub on a saturday evening, checking b3ta (and posting a whole 24 mins after you), playing a bit of l4d, checking b3ta, then going to bed is the hallmark of a very sad life. Far worse than being up in front of the keyboard, bitter and seething, at half seven on a sunday morning.

Really, if you've reduced yourself to pointing out timestamps, you might as well quit now. You have nothing worthwhile to say.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:06, closed)

You're right. Having breakfast with my children is exactly the same as staying up until three for an argument on the interwebs.
But hey ... if you're determined to demonstrate that you're a loser in real life as well as the interwebs then you knock yourself out.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:09, closed)

Wow, you managed to breed. That's some pretty high-end stuff right there - really, very few manage it at all. For what it's worth, so have I - is there a prize?

Odd you should suggest that those who have been unable/unwilling to reproduce are 'losers', though. That's fairly arrogant, rather self-absorbed - 'they're not like me, so they must be wrong'. Shows you up as even more of a dick than I'd previously expected.

EDIT: you really are keen on this unmarked, after-the-fact editing, aren't you? Almost as if you're worried about random strangers thinking badly of you. Not the first time either, it seems...
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:16, closed)

Keep going.
This is gold.

Well ... not really gold ... more gold-painted porcelain. Like those dogs your gran has on either side of her electric fire.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:23, closed)

.
i want to use that.
( browser still relating boring anecdotes into a void on, Wed 16 Feb 2011, 15:30, closed)

I'm gonna use that...

(Kip, Thu 17 Feb 2011, 11:00, closed)

It must be fun being your kids
"Hey Dad! Guess what I did at school!"

"Why would I be interested in your day you needy little prick"

"I had to stand up infront of the class and read a book, I was terrified"

"So, your story is 'I read some words'. Loser"
( Ring Of Fire A petty, drooling belming butthurt retard., Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:17, closed)

It's a beautiful vignette of family life.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:23, closed)

Shit. You're right.
If only I'd spent three hours of the night playing video games instead.

Im doin it rong agen.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:27, closed)

Well, I did consider popping out for a quick decathalon, but what with it being past midnight, post pub, I thought a little l4d might be more appropriate. Silly me.

Besdes which, your 83'000 posts on /talk (all shit) rather erode your moral highground in this respect.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:41, closed)

Thatta boy!
Keep it personal. Make sure everybody can see it's got under your skin. You're heading for a historic victory.

Fast reader though. Teacher must be proud.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:46, closed)

....
really? Given what you've posted above, you're honestly going to try for that?

Keep indulging your pathalogical need to have the last word in every single thread, though...
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:53, closed)

Enough !
Sort this out in the carpark like proper chaps
(Bitter and Twisted, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 14:53, closed)

You racist cranberry.

( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 19:31, closed)

I'm quite enjoying the rubbernecking
actually.
(Misery McUglywife an attention seeking sociopathic fuckstain., Sun 13 Feb 2011, 23:44, closed)

Have to agree with Happy Phantom
None of your responses can be classed as amusing. You are way too quick with the personal insults.

I have read with alarm stories of the legal establishment trying to take over the internet. Just this week Twitter posts were legally classed as public domain. Do we really want the internet to be policed? Then people like you come along, intent on causing disruption and I start to think that something needs to be done. Internet freedom will only work if everybody plays nicely.
(remoteneeded, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 9:06, closed)

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aluminium_foil
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 9:09, closed)

www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Paper-Hat
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 9:17, closed)

If you think this is humour, stop trying
You write like a bully and a forum troll.

It makes you sound like a really nasty person,
I hope you don't treat friends and family this way.
(googlebot, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 14:04, closed)

Fuck. It's the Internet Judge.

( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 14:08, closed)

You horrid keyboard bully. I pity you.

( Wicca'd Witch needs ideas for a new sig on..., Sun 13 Feb 2011, 16:12, closed)

im only 12 and what is this?

( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 17:13, closed)

HERE'S JMG.

( Jam Master Geordie Hero of B3ta., Sun 13 Feb 2011, 15:28, closed)

YES!

( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 15:50, closed)

I got their name right
Vodaphone spell it wrong.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:26, closed)

fair point
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:26, closed)

And Quick Fit
the cunts.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Sun 13 Feb 2011, 13:44, closed)

ummm, 'Little Victories'?
errr...
(minlan no longer barks at bancleys, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 11:17, closed)

I don't get it.
£5200 a year is nothing to them, they spend more on a single flight for one exec to fly from one end of the country to another. They're still operating, and in fact, have been growing completely. You are not £78k better off because you spent it on shopping elsewhere, and even if you had, you would be £78k worth of goods down.
( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:40, closed)

Thanks, gonz.
And now back to the studio for sport.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:42, closed)

I got a victory against B&Q, if I had a chronic addiction to DIY I could have spent up to everything I own + what the bank would lend me, probably at least £1000, maybe even £1100.
But I don't really both with DIY stuff, so they're down 100%+potential borrowings of my entire fortune.
( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:55, closed)

Those orange-bibbed fuckers will rue the day.

( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:56, closed)

Also
in my opinion Ocado are made of pure win.
I get all my shopping through them which means I can get Waitrose products in a town without a store and I don't have to go to supermarkets with the rest of the population.

I must have had over 30 orders from them and not one has been wrong or late, even in the snow.

(if anyone wants to start shopping with Ocado then gaz me your email as they do 'refer a friend' type vouchers)
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Sat 12 Feb 2011, 17:44, closed)

So what wound me up about Ocado?
Ocado had happily been delivering to us every week for a year but nicely cancelled our regular shop moments before Christmas. If we wanted our shoping we would have to pay treble the delivery fee. If we wanted our regular delivery slot we'd have to join a 'club' for an aditional fee. Basically they tried hard to exploit us. Bye bye Ocado, too many alternatives.
(remoteneeded, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:02, closed)

Well they cancelled everyones regular slot the week before
Christmas and emailed everyone to say that they had done so.

Slots for Christmas week had to be booked about 3 weeks in advance.
That this was going to happen was all over the home page of the website from about November onwards.

Yes they did charge a lot more for delivery that week which was a bit off, but not worth getting your knickers in a knot over.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:08, closed)

I can't believe you're defending Mubarak.
You're worse than Hitler.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:10, closed)

Mubarak shops at Sainsburys
Hitler shopped with Ocado.
(remoteneeded, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:17, closed)

Horrible homophobia.
You should be banned.
( Dr. Shambolic je suis charlie, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:17, closed)

Sainsbury's won't care, but you still did the right thing.
I can understand those saying that this doesn't really bother Sainsbury's -- but if a few more people were willing to vote with their wallet and abandon shops that treat them like crap we'd be a lot better off.
Plus, paying money to someone who treated you like shit does make you a bit of a pushover.
(Me, I'm not... in any way intoxicated, Sat 12 Feb 2011, 18:37, closed)

Me, too, different retailer
I did the same to Jessops in about 1995; one of their clueless oiks finally tipped me over the edge. I've spent many pennies elsewhere on shiny photographic kit since then and they have closed forknose how many branches. Coincidence? I don't think so.
(The Jannie, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 19:24, closed)

Got to agree with you
If people get treated badly and there is an alternative they're likely to go to it. Shops like Jessops seems surprised when everybody dropped them and headed for the internet. It wasn't just about the cheaper prices. Shop in store, pay more and have a crap experience. Shop online, get it cheaper and don't come away angry. No choice really.
(remoteneeded, Sun 13 Feb 2011, 21:31, closed)

Erm
Am I the only one thinking that a 15 year hiatus is an excessive reaction to a wet baby seat?
( elgordo, Mon 14 Feb 2011, 10:21, closed)

They didn't fair well in 2010, according to Which mag
Supermarket Customer score (online score in brackets where applicable)

Waitrose 79% (80%)
Ocado N/A (80%)
Marks & Spencer 64%
Aldi 61%
Lidl 61%
Sainsbury’s 58% (70%)
Morrisons 56%
Asda 49% (60%)
Tesco 49% (64%)
The co-operative 45%
Netto 41%

The thing I love about this is Tesco's (overpriced dog shit) is right down the bottom with the Co-Op and Netto, that's what happens when you rip farmers and consumers off, proving that if people do have a bad experience they will go to the lesser known stores.
(bROKEN aRROW PUA HVI Master, Mon 14 Feb 2011, 12:19, closed)

And people look at me like I'm all posh when I get stuff from Ocado
which is the same price as Tesco.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Mon 14 Feb 2011, 18:03, closed)

Dr Shambolic
won this argument hands down
(sonofstuj is exactly who you think he is, Thu 17 Feb 2011, 8:24, closed)