All comment & opinion articles – Page 509
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Comment & Opinion
Second Opinion: Fine words, but no grip on policy
As a global consensus emerges on the food crisis, politicians must get real, says Tim Lang
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Comment & Opinion
Promiscuity is a killer of loyalty
Sir, Professor Byron Sharp's assertion that marketers using promotions to build brand loyalty are like medieval doctors whose bloodletting tactics inadvertently kill the patient is wide of the mark ('Promotions don't build loyalty, they leech life...
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Comment & Opinion
Family misfortunes
Snow returned to Grocer Towers today, albeit briefly – but the chill that ran down many a back earlier this week had nothing to do with the mercury falling. GDP shrank by 0.5% in the previous quarter, we learned on Tuesday, confounding predictions – or maybe they were just hopes ...
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Comment & Opinion
Moment of clarity
North of the border devotees of Robert Burns were last night raising a glass of something medicinal to toast the great poet and help wash down the traditional feast of sheep’s stomach and mashed turnip. Maybe some subversive types even sparked a cigar.
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Comment & Opinion
Shake your moneymaker
They say money talks and bullsh—er, other stuff walks. We saw on Friday evening how cash is king, when Ranjit Boparan drove a coach and horses through the proposed Essenta tie-up. Specifically, a coach filled with money (reportedly lent to him by the good folk at Goldman Sachs).
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Comment & OpinionTales of Titania: Ambulance-chasing and citrus slop
As fully signed-up members of the ambulance-chasing wing of PR, we're about to pump new promotional life into the corpse of a great British tradition. All hail The Marmalade Initiative, the first and almost certainly last generic campaign to...
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Comment & Opinion
Mr Muscle hits back at Challs
Sir, We are writing to make you aware of an inaccuracy in your Supplier Spotlight on Challs (8 January). The article claims Buster, Challs International's plughole cleaner brand, is 'the biggest plughole unblocker in the country",...
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Comment & OpinionCritical Eye... on druid shrubberies and underwater beehives
Bees know the score. One sign (among many) of the coming apocalypse is their mass disappearance, though boffins don't know if they've been poisoned by pesticides, have wearily relocated underwater or been imprisoned by wasps.
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Comment & Opinion
Saturday Essay: Shoppers look beyond price. Brands must too
Today’s consumers want a deeper brand experience that includes information and entertainment, says Julia Hutchison
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Comment & Opinion
Whitehall's binge drinking crackdown will be as effective as Cameron’s big society
In its juggling act to kickstart the economy, the government is cutting public expenditure… while increasing VAT… at the same time as keeping a lid on inflation. Just like that!
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Comment & Opinion
Careers File: Got the blues? Well, it is the most depressing time of year
You are either over the worst already, or it is coming your way on Monday. Either 17 January or 24 January is the most depressing day of the year, according to psychologists. To add to the gloom, they cannot agree on the precise date for Blue...
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Comment & Opinion
Second Opinion: Let’s chuck out this hospital slop
The NHS’s cheap, mass-produced food policy needs a complete overhaul, says Joanna Blythman
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Comment & Opinion
Third Party: Retailers owe it to staff to help stop violence
Seek advice on preventing crime in your store – the consequences of not doing so are far-reaching, says Robert Ryan
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Comment & Opinion
Above the argy-bargy
Sometimes it’s better to rise above it. The unseemly spat over pricing between some of the UK’s largest supermarkets rolled on this week, with Tesco unveiling new press ads having a pop at Asda’s 10% price guarantee.
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Comment & Opinion
The battle for Northern's soul
The time has nearly run out for Ranjit Boparan to put up or shut up and clarify whether he intends to table a bid for Northern Foods.
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Comment & Opinion
When good men do nothing
They say evil prospers when good men do nothing. And by doing very little today, the coalition has managed to upset almost everybody. Retailers in England and Wales are to be banned from selling booze below the cost of duty plus VAT.
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Comment & Opinion
Unhappy Mondays
Today is Blue Monday. That’s the most depressing day of the year, if you believe ‘research’ paid for by online travel agents that want you to book some winter sun. Perhaps that explains the tetchiness in the weekend’s exchanges between Tesco and Asda over the latter’s 10% pledge.
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Comment & Opinion
Terry Caton's Expert Advice: How to win in an austere new year
Freezing winds, climbing taxes and shoppers feeling the pinch... but it’s not all bad news for c-store owners
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Comment & Opinion
Careers File: If you're looking for an angel to help with your career, why not consider a coach?
I read over the Christmas break that, according to a recent survey, one in three people in Britain believe in angels. There have certainly been a fair few occasions in my career when I have felt like someone was watching over me.
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Comment & OpinionListen to the eerie silence surrounding Asda’s Price Guarantee
What took you so long? It was a strange way for Asda to respond after it was overtaken by Sainsbury’s in the Kantar Worldpanel data this week. But there was no shortage of strange responses.