A sad day as yet another supermarket arrives in town
I took the images below a year or so after the extensive demolition involved in preparing the site to make way for Asda. This is the store under construction, and even before it was opened it was the talk of the town. I am sure that some people welcomed it but a great many vowed never to enter when it was finally opened. It seems to be doing very good business, but I am pleased to say I am not one of their customers.
Supermarkets in general are, on balance, not good for any local community. Yes, of course there are benefits – of a sort – but are they not outweighed by the dis-benefits?
They suck money out of the town and make a small handful of people very rich and very powerful. They use their power to screw down producers – from farmers to dressmakers – on price (and often quality too). People get cheap stuff and seem to like it, but do not care about how those prices became so cheap and the damage caused to livelihoods and the environment. Local markets and other shops simply cannot compete, and the town centre remains in decline to this day.
I have a confession to make. I am sorry to say that I shop in supermarkets too, but that is because bakers, butchers, greengrocers, delis are hard to find – if they exist at all – thanks to supermarkets!
Photos are cropped to fit into the space below; click to enlarge and to view at correct aspect ratio.
Colin Anderson 
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