Post by Max on Oct 3, 2020 14:11:53 GMT
I find it laughable recently that the CMA are now popping their heads up into the mainstream media to issuing warnings that they are monitoring price rises to see if any retailers are trying to ‘exploit’ or cash in on coronavirus. They have spoken out and given the reason that they are doing this to protect consumers from unfair trade practices. What a joke they are looking!
Whilst it is a welcome directive on this occasion, most traditional retailers would have loved to have seen this kind of interest from the CMA targeting all of the below mentioned difficulties which have ripped retailers to shreds and been bad for the public before now.
Shame they have not been so keen to issue directives and exert their authority to protect the High Street retailers at all in the last 20 years. They have sat back and allowed ‘exploitive’ loss-leading tactics and misleading pricing policies from these internet companies which was been a massive factor for the growth in on-line retailers, directly to the detriment of traditional retailers. This has left us in the state we are now, which is significantly less choice for consumers in towns and cities and depriving the public of being able to pick up stock and take it home with them if they want.
The past couple of decades has seen an appalling decline in the High Street with massive and long established names falling victim to every kind of thing stacked against them. Examples such as business rates, rents, enforced minimum wage increases, enforced pension contribution increases have all gone up, and disproportionately so, when foot fall and takings are decreasing over the same timeframes. Local council’s policy and attitude to parking charges and parking restrictions have continued to exasperate the problems. Perhaps the biggest factor throughout all this is the huge growth in on-line companies stepping in with aggressive loss-leading tactics. Initially they bought business and customers by making huge losses and exploited this until they had managed to kill off much of the traditional retail competition. Of course economic down turn, Brexit, recession, austerity policies, consumer confidence, negative media’s artificial way of reporting, floods and now coronavirus have all played their part too.
All these changes and practices have taken place in plain sight of the CMA without a single headline grabbing announcement or idea from them where action was needed. Why now all of a sudden are they giving any importance to fairness?!
It appears CMA have spent two decades turning a blind eye to almost every aspect of the retail sector. They quietly sit back while Amazon and the likes ‘exploit’ and mislead with their pricing policies, the companies exploit tax laws, workers’ rights, health and safety, etc but the playing field has never been levelled despite all these things.
The CMA have been guilty of having some responsible for the state of retail due to their passive approach.
Whilst it is a welcome directive on this occasion, most traditional retailers would have loved to have seen this kind of interest from the CMA targeting all of the below mentioned difficulties which have ripped retailers to shreds and been bad for the public before now.
Shame they have not been so keen to issue directives and exert their authority to protect the High Street retailers at all in the last 20 years. They have sat back and allowed ‘exploitive’ loss-leading tactics and misleading pricing policies from these internet companies which was been a massive factor for the growth in on-line retailers, directly to the detriment of traditional retailers. This has left us in the state we are now, which is significantly less choice for consumers in towns and cities and depriving the public of being able to pick up stock and take it home with them if they want.
The past couple of decades has seen an appalling decline in the High Street with massive and long established names falling victim to every kind of thing stacked against them. Examples such as business rates, rents, enforced minimum wage increases, enforced pension contribution increases have all gone up, and disproportionately so, when foot fall and takings are decreasing over the same timeframes. Local council’s policy and attitude to parking charges and parking restrictions have continued to exasperate the problems. Perhaps the biggest factor throughout all this is the huge growth in on-line companies stepping in with aggressive loss-leading tactics. Initially they bought business and customers by making huge losses and exploited this until they had managed to kill off much of the traditional retail competition. Of course economic down turn, Brexit, recession, austerity policies, consumer confidence, negative media’s artificial way of reporting, floods and now coronavirus have all played their part too.
All these changes and practices have taken place in plain sight of the CMA without a single headline grabbing announcement or idea from them where action was needed. Why now all of a sudden are they giving any importance to fairness?!
It appears CMA have spent two decades turning a blind eye to almost every aspect of the retail sector. They quietly sit back while Amazon and the likes ‘exploit’ and mislead with their pricing policies, the companies exploit tax laws, workers’ rights, health and safety, etc but the playing field has never been levelled despite all these things.
The CMA have been guilty of having some responsible for the state of retail due to their passive approach.