Commerce Even though I don't drink much wine, one of my pleasures is visiting Oddbins to buy a bottle as a present for other people. My selection process has been honed over many years and is based on a simple premise -- does it have an interesting label? The customer service is always of an extremely high standard. When I was last in Allerton Road, I happened to mention the purchase was for my mother's birthday and the vinter offered to gift wrap it for me, which he did with lots of frills and bows and the kind of artistic commitment not seen since Michelangelo lay on his back for four years, wiping paint and dust from his beard.
But the chain is in trouble thanks to big discounts by supermarkets and the bargain off licenses and a less discerning public pallet and though the Allerton Road shop is safe, they're closing the outlets on Bold Street and Castle Street as they cut back their total number of shops by a third. This leaves, because of further closure in Formby and the Wirral, the Allerton Road branch as the only Oddbins on Merseyside. I'm not that surprised. These are never busy shops, though when I asked one of the vintners about that they suggested I visit on a weekend evening and see the queues. But that can't be a sustainable business model, and as it turns out isn't.
No comments:
Post a Comment