The Magazine on supermarkets
Tescooccupies a unique place in British retail, visited by millions but controversial to many. It all started with a barrow selling fish paste, says Denise Winterman.
People spend billions each year shopping online, but few know it was a grandmother from Gateshead who pioneered it from her living room, says Jon Kelly.
Nearly five decades have passed since the UK's first out-of- town superstore opened its doors. It differed starkly from the outlets used by millions today, but it helped change British shopping forever, says Jon Kelly - of the shop we now know asAsda.
"For example, with the Waitrose opening in Helensburgh, we've been told that an Indian restaurant, with a branch already near one of our Glasgow shops has decided to invest here and an existing delicatessen is opening a restaurant in the town on the back of us coming."
The location is a long way from Acton, London, where the original Waite, Rose & Taylor opened in 1904, and even further from the leafy, Home County suburbs where the retailer gained its reputation as grocer to the middle classes. Waitrose now has a presence is the South East of England, the North, Wales, the South West and Scotland and says it "appeals to broad and varied groups of people".
Ian Bradberry, branch manager for Sharman Quinney estate agents in Oundle, Northants, says he has definitely seen the "Waitrose effect" in the town where a branch opened recently.
"There has definitely been more interest in properties around where it is located. We do expect that in time this will result in an increase in prices. The 'Waitrose effect' is particularly prevalent in a small market town like Oundle where older buyers look for properties within walking distance of the local shops and supermarkets."
But like the chicken and the egg, is it a case of Waitrose following affluent customers, or does the opening of a branch make an area more desirable? In the absence of evidence, anecdote can often be king.
"Waitrose, like other brands, invests time and money opening in the location that matches their profile," says Paul Langston, consulting partner of location strategy at market research analysts CACI.
The latest branch of Waitrose opens in Helensburgh - pictured here in 1900
"No-one has ever done the research to isolate what is the cause and what's the effect. It is difficult to prove that a town has become more desirable because of a Waitrose. There have been some businesses that have come to me and said they want to be somewhere if a Waitrose is going to open. There is a slight snowball effect."
Waitrose timeline
*.1904 - First shop opened in Acton Hill, London, by Wallace Waite, Arthur Rose and David Taylor
*.1937 - Bought by John Lewis Partnership
*.1992 - 100th branch
*.1994 - Open on a Sunday for the first time
*.2001 - First TV advert
*.2008 - First Waitrose outside the UK, with two franchised shops in Dubai
*. 2009 - 200th branch
*. 2013 - First time customer numbers average more than five million a week
People spend billions each year shopping online, but few know it was a grandmother from Gateshead who pioneered it from her living room, says Jon Kelly.
Nearly five decades have passed since the UK's first out-of- town superstore opened its doors. It differed starkly from the outlets used by millions today, but it helped change British shopping forever, says Jon Kelly - of the shop we now know asAsda.
"For example, with the Waitrose opening in Helensburgh, we've been told that an Indian restaurant, with a branch already near one of our Glasgow shops has decided to invest here and an existing delicatessen is opening a restaurant in the town on the back of us coming."
The location is a long way from Acton, London, where the original Waite, Rose & Taylor opened in 1904, and even further from the leafy, Home County suburbs where the retailer gained its reputation as grocer to the middle classes. Waitrose now has a presence is the South East of England, the North, Wales, the South West and Scotland and says it "appeals to broad and varied groups of people".
Ian Bradberry, branch manager for Sharman Quinney estate agents in Oundle, Northants, says he has definitely seen the "Waitrose effect" in the town where a branch opened recently.
"There has definitely been more interest in properties around where it is located. We do expect that in time this will result in an increase in prices. The 'Waitrose effect' is particularly prevalent in a small market town like Oundle where older buyers look for properties within walking distance of the local shops and supermarkets."
But like the chicken and the egg, is it a case of Waitrose following affluent customers, or does the opening of a branch make an area more desirable? In the absence of evidence, anecdote can often be king.
"Waitrose, like other brands, invests time and money opening in the location that matches their profile," says Paul Langston, consulting partner of location strategy at market research analysts CACI.
The latest branch of Waitrose opens in Helensburgh - pictured here in 1900
"No-one has ever done the research to isolate what is the cause and what's the effect. It is difficult to prove that a town has become more desirable because of a Waitrose. There have been some businesses that have come to me and said they want to be somewhere if a Waitrose is going to open. There is a slight snowball effect."
Waitrose timeline
*.1904 - First shop opened in Acton Hill, London, by Wallace Waite, Arthur Rose and David Taylor
*.1937 - Bought by John Lewis Partnership
*.1992 - 100th branch
*.1994 - Open on a Sunday for the first time
*.2001 - First TV advert
*.2008 - First Waitrose outside the UK, with two franchised shops in Dubai
*. 2009 - 200th branch
*. 2013 - First time customer numbers average more than five million a week
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