In the week that the Competition Commission announced the results of its 16 month inquiry into supermarkets, one of my two remaining local greengrocers shut up shop for good. Five years ago there were five greengrocers in my immediate vicinity in north-east London. Now we are down to one and she tells me that she can remember when there were eight of them, all making a good living. Last year my butcher closed. Two had closed the previous year, hot on the heels of the fishmonger in the same street. When they went, many people went tch, shame'. The butcher had tried to get a hot food licence and was repeatedly turned down by the council, in spite of a petition. Naturally when Waitrose opened next door to Sainsbury a couple of miles away, there was no problem about hot food licences. Or lottery tickets or newspaper supplies. And the council obligingly put in some traffic lights and a slip road just as it had for Tesco two years earlier and just as councils the length and breadth of the country have been doing for the past 15 years. Ah, but it hasn't been all beer and skittles for the supers. Sainsbury scratched its head when Tesco loomed and then attempted to enlarge itself by swallowing the local cinema. The people protested in great groups and the council listened to its voters (this works when there are enough involved) so I'm pleased to say that my kids still go to the local cinema. But Sainsbury remembered the old adage where there is a will, there is a way' and built itself a mezzanine car park on stilts so managing to extend anyway ­ enough to put the Alldays franchise opposite out of business. Where the greengrocers, fishmonger and butchers once were, there are now two pizza takeaway outlets whizzing their cardboard stuff around on motor scooters, two frizzled-grizzled chicken joints and a not-bad Greek chippie. I always supported the butcher and fishmonger ­ but of course they both closed early, before the Central Line emptied its home-going evening throngs looking for fodder not 25 yards from their premises. The bright side to the local shopping scene was that there were ­ and still are ­ plenty of offies. I can get booze at no fewer than seven outlets within 100 yards. And my local Budgens, the Londis opposite and the Londis on the other side of the line have thrived throughout this game of musical chairs. This tale has several messages. It's proof of the pudding ­ were it were needed ­ that the Competition Commission got it right about supers harming the little guys. So, what do you need to survive these tough times? Extend your hours (like the butcher didn't), add hot food (it's very popular), put in chilled and fresh (to replace the dying greengrocers), and get an off licence. And if I sound like a symbol group head office, that is only because I am repeating their eternal message. It works for them and it could work for you. {{GROCER CLUB }}