Many many businesses DEAD

  • Thread starter Thread starter AGinAg (37)
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Maybe Scotland purged them pre-emptively. They're still in EVERY boring English town.

I know they made some noise about the Toys R Us tie-in, but if my local store is anything to go by, it's all a load of NOTHING. A couple of shelves of jigsaws and board games that nobody ever buys because there is an Argos and an Entertainer selling the same tat for cheaper only next door.

Sadly they DID clean up the carpet when Toys R Us "moved in" :(
 
Having now checked a map, there are possibly two that count as high street in Glasgow. One on Sauchiehall street which is a completely dead street that I've not been on for years, and one that is part of the Argyle Street train station but probably considered to be retail anyway
 
It's not part of the station, but it is very close to it. It used to be on two floors but they closed the basement and crammed everything into the ground floor, making it an unpleasant experience.
 
We have a bizarre small one in our second shopping precinct (Southsea rather than Portsmouth) and I say bizarre as it's always ENTIRELY empty and I've often thought it must be some kind of TAX DODGE or MONEY LAUNDERING affair, like MOST of Southsea's businesses, to be fair, given that we do not need that many coffee shops or barbers.
 
Sauchiehall St is dead now? I've not been to Glasgow in about 25 years, but didn't it used to be the main (or one of the main) shopping roads? What is it now?
 
Sheena said:
We have a bizarre small one in our second shopping precinct (Southsea rather than Portsmouth) and I say bizarre as it's always ENTIRELY empty and I've often thought it must be some kind of TAX DODGE or MONEY LAUNDERING affair, like MOST of Southsea's businesses, to be fair, given that we do not need that many coffee shops or barbers.
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Weve been using our TWO TOGETHER RAILCARD a lot this year thanks to his retirement and the number of Turkish barbers almost everywhere I've been recently is ridiculous.

Even in small towns they appear to be everywhere. It's either money laundering or the locals are getting their haircuts twice daily.
 
lolly said:
Weve been using our TWO TOGETHER RAILCARD a lot this year thanks to his retirement and the number of Turkish barbers almost everywhere I've been recently is ridiculous.

Even in small towns they appear to be everywhere. It's either money laundering or the locals are getting their haircuts twice daily.
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The level of "blind eye" here is ridiculous and I'm not entirely sure why it's allowed to happen. During lockdown, four new restaurants appeared in the same road- a Greek, an Italian, a Spanish and a burger place. All looked vaguely similar, but were supposedly separate businesses. Like, first of all, who the fuck tries to open four restaurants at the same time in the same road IN THE MIDDLE OF A PANDEMIC? When lockdown ended, only the Greek and Spanish actually ever opened their doors, but never had anyone in them, the Spanish hilariously we tried to go into one one day on my Mum's request, only to be told, somewhat incredulously, "Lunch? But, but...we don't have any food" ( :D ), all closed down within six months. Only in the last six months have they all simultaneously appeared "for sale/ for rent", with the same phone number and font etc. displayed in the window.

I mean, COME ON.
 
The other one here is the sudden amount of corner/ vape shops, often with the PREMIER brand attached to them. Again, three in the same small road have opened since Christmas, on a road that already has a Spar and an off licence, with a Sainsbury's, Tesco and at least three or four other convenience stores just round the corner.
 
lolly said:
Sauchiehall St is dead now? I've not been to Glasgow in about 25 years, but didn't it used to be the main (or one of the main) shopping roads? What is it now?
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Yeah, half the shops are closed, buildings have burned down and it seemed like there is always work going on that gets in the way of walking along it.
 
Reading also has the corner shop trend, very noticeable in the last year.

Seemingly a new one opening every week, always in a location next door to existing shops, American sodas making up a staggeringly large proportion of the stock, and if you do wander in the staff look STARTLED and vaguely ALARMED
 
Sheena said:
The other one here is the sudden amount of corner/ vape shops, often with the PREMIER brand attached to them. Again, three in the same small road have opened since Christmas, on a road that already has a Spar and an off licence, with a Sainsbury's, Tesco and at least three or four other convenience stores just round the corner.
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Isn't a lot of it due to business rates/tax avoidance? These places open up meaning the owners aren't liable, make whatever money they can, then close/change hands before paying tax themselves.
 
While we have the same issues - endless barbers, vape shops, cafes etc, we don't quite have the same issue re: AMERICAN FUCKING SWEET SHOPS. I think there's a couple and all clearly money laundering. WHO IS ALLOWING THIS?

All that being said the local FB moaners really are full of shit. There are loads of decent new shops opening here. I dunno whether Søstrene Grene is considered decent, but I do keep popping in and enjoy their quirky prices. Plus our Debenhams is being redeveloped.

The benefit of living in still growing city with millions of pounds of funding from the last government, before we promptly voted the Tories out locally :disco:
 
lolly said:
Isn't a lot of it due to business rates/tax avoidance? These places open up meaning the owners aren't liable, make whatever money they can, then close/change hands before paying tax themselves.
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Maybe, but it's a SCAM somewhere.
 
AGinAg (38) said:
While we have the same issues - endless barbers, vape shops, cafes etc, we don't quite have the same issue re: AMERICAN FUCKING SWEET SHOPS. I think there's a couple and all clearly money laundering. WHO IS ALLOWING THIS?

All that being said the local FB moaners really are full of shit. There are loads of decent new shops opening here. I dunno whether Søstrene Grene is considered decent, but I do keep popping in and enjoy their quirky prices. Plus our Debenhams is being redeveloped.

The benefit of living in still growing city with millions of pounds of funding from the last government, before we promptly voted the Tories out locally :disco:
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Apparently, the American sweet shop scam has become too "hot" and now they're all being replaced with Harry Potter merchandise shops instead, so that's NICE on SO MANY LEVELS.
 
The bubble tea places here always seem to be RAMMED with teenagers
 
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lolly said:
Sauchiehall St is dead now? I've not been to Glasgow in about 25 years, but didn't it used to be the main (or one of the main) shopping roads? What is it now?
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ZenGiraffe said:
Yeah, half the shops are closed, buildings have burned down and it seemed like there is always work going on that gets in the way of walking along it.
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When it started to struggle, the council took the genius move of digging it up in chunks, this ensuring that no-one could freely get up and down it for a period of years in the immediate aftermatch of a pandemic.
 
I tried bubble tea with my youngest Godson. We both hated everything involved. Again I think we only have one.

I know it's very easy to brand them all as tax avoidance schemes or money laundering, but I'm fairly sure most of them are just folk chasing a trend and trying to make a quick buck. I'm happy to live naively when it comes to my shopping, otherwise I'd never buy anything.
 
Sheena said:
Apparently, the American sweet shop scam has become too "hot" and now they're all being replaced with Harry Potter merchandise shops instead, so that's NICE on SO MANY LEVELS.
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I'd like think, at the very least Joanne will be losing out of merchandising, so EVERY CLOUD.
 
I enjoy a bubble tea. But ordering it is fucking bewildering. All those flavours. Milk or fruit. What type of pearl or topping. What level of sweetness you want. What level of ice you want.

It's so much easier to grab a Coke. And about four quid cheaper.
 
lolly said:
I enjoy a bubble tea. But ordering it is fucking bewildering. All those flavours. Milk or fruit. What type of pearl or topping. What level of sweetness you want. What level of ice you want.

It's so much easier to grab a Coke. And about four quid cheaper.
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It’s all sugar and coloring anyway init
 
AGinAg (38) said:
I'd like think, at the very least Joanne will be losing out of merchandising, so EVERY CLOUD.
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With a little luck, she’ll try to collect her royalties from BIG VINNY and be on the receiving end of a punishment beating.
 
ZenGiraffe said:
Where even are high street WH Smiths?

I can't think of any in Glasgow or Edinburgh
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There’s one at Waverley Station which is as close as you’ll get in Edinburgh. The others are in local shopping centres/retail parks near the city outskirts.
 
Ellie said:
Bubble Tea bars seem to be all the rage in my area, and I’ve never seen anyone in them.
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I know I don't live over there but I Sense this is a global trend? They opened 4 Bubble Tea Bars, all with a specific design like a jungle-themed one and another Anime/J-Pop one and they look empty all the time, no to mention they have bizarre operating hours (One of them has the luxury of closing on weekends, madness.).
 
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