What an absolute waste of half an hour: Prattling on about chocolate spread while ignoring other issues like zero-hour contracts for staff or workfare. Dispatches has become really poor since moving to the half-hour format, a bit like how Panorama dumbed down when it moved from Sunday nights to Monday primetime:rolleyes:
Have to agree with you there, I had been hoping there would be at least some reference to poundlands "recruitment" techniques.
Despatches is not available on 4od... wonder why?
What a load of old tosh, badly researched, biased and badly presented.
Indeed, I watched this to find out what this 'mystery' is on how they can offer these products at £1. Apart from the deliberate placing of '% free' on products that really don't have it, the rest of the programme was just desperate journalism.
I bet the programme was originally a hour long but there was so much abso-crap in it that it was cut to this 30 mins. This could have been a caveat emptor 5 mins segment on Watchdog or some other consumer programme.
What an absolute waste of half an hour: Prattling on about chocolate spread while ignoring other issues like zero-hour contracts for staff or workfare. Dispatches has become really poor since moving to the half-hour format, a bit like how Panorama dumbed down when it moved from Sunday nights to Monday primetime:rolleyes:
I thought Panorama was going to be doing a similar show on shopping tonight, as the title was 'Price Tag Wars' but apparently it is just about the Palestinian / Israeli problems. :rolleyes:
What a hatchet job. So biased. I'm amazed they've even broadcast this.
It's almost as though they were working on behalf of Tesco and Asda.
Are the makers of this rubbish totally unaware that the big supermarkets use every trick in the book to confuse us into spending more than we intend to?
The two 'experts' were unbelievably pathetic. Do people really get paid good money to spout the kind of drivel they came out with?:eek:
My wife used to manage a 1-hour photolab concession in a big store, and she used to put photo frames in a "dump bin" which were not reduced, (no "sale" or "reduced" signs - just normal price tickets on each frame) they flew out of the shop.
It's called "merchandising" and is what all big retailers do.
Making people take a trolley by putting heavy stuff at the entrance, feeding the baked bread smell from the bakery ovens to the store entrance. putting kids toys and treats on lower shelves, sweets at the checkouts. etc etc
How many times have seen Tesco or Asda (to mention 2 shops from this program) have an offer like "2 for £3" when the items cost less than £1.50 each anyway.?
So the "truth" about the big retail shop Poundland.... is they behave like a big retail shop !!!
The presenter keeps comparing the Asda offer items against poundland items.
What he should be doing is getting a price average and comparing those to poundland.
All the major supermarkets have lots of items discounted at any time, so why use the price average when a customer who wants to save money will be buying items in the supermarket when they are discounted?
I don't need to go to Poundland or similar stores to save money; I can save more by using the offers available in supermarkets pretty much continuously such that most every item purchased with a shelf-life of more than a couple of weeks will be bought at a significant discount when that is offered, and kept until I want to use it.
For common products that don't keep long such as bread, if you can't get Warburton or Hovis or whatever on offer when you want it, the supermarket generally has better value but equal quality own brands available anyway. You don't need a familiar name to get a good product.
All the major supermarkets have lots of items discounted at any time, so why use the price average when a customer who wants to save money will be buying items in the supermarket when they are discounted?
The warburton bread that was featured usually sells at £1.35, the presenter on the show kept comparing the poundland price to Asda's £1.00 offer which is wrong.
Surely he should be comparing it to Sainsburys, Tesco and Waitrose price which is a far more realistic price.
I thought Panorama was going to be doing a similar show on shopping tonight, as the title was 'Price Tag Wars' but apparently it is just about the Palestinian / Israeli problems. :rolleyes:
But the Panorama really highlighted how things are hotting up in the Middle East:
- BANG: Israel offers 2 for 1 on Diet Coke.
- BOOM: The Palestinians retaliate with 3 for 2 on Jaffa Cakes.
- POW: Israel escalates with half price own brand Corn Flakes.
- ZAP: Palestinian fighters hit back with cut price Kodak batteries.
- KAPOW: Israel floods the Gaza Strip with a special on Monster Munch (Pickled Onion flavour).
- SMASH: The Palestinians make menacing noises about cutting the price of Dettol.
- GAME OVER: Backed by the US, Israel offers DOUBLE Nectar points on all purchases.
In all seriousness, I don't need to shop in Poundland and rarely do.
However, for the discerning shopper they have some excellent high street prices.
A few days ago I needed an HDMI cable. Cost? Surprise, surprise - £1.
It did exactly the same job as the massively overpriced HDMI cable (something like £20-30) that it was sitting next to in the telly.
The USB car charger I bought from there, whilst nowhere near as ergonimcally pleasing, did exactly the same job as the one I spent 8 quid on at Halfords.
The warburton bread that was featured usually sells at £1.35, the presenter on the show kept comparing the poundland price to Asda's £1.00 offer which is wrong.
Surely he should be comparing it to Sainsburys, Tesco and Waitrose price which is a far more realistic price.
I would guess they compared products on offer against Poundland prices, because people go to Poundland because they want to save money. If the same people went to a normal supermarket, I'm sure they would choose the products on offer there rather than those at full price.
Therefore it is perfectly fair to use supermarket store offers when comparing against a chain like Poundland which has a varying range of products at what they say is a discount, when supermarkets are doing the same thing but are often a lot cheaper when the supermarket discounts them, but the supermarkets also sell them at full price when not on offer.
In all seriousness, I don't need to shop in Poundland and rarely do.
However, for the discerning shopper they have some excellent high street prices.
A few days ago I needed an HDMI cable. Cost? Surprise, surprise - £1.
It did exactly the same job as the massively overpriced HDMI cable (something like £20-30) that it was sitting next to in the telly.
The USB car charger I bought from there, whilst nowhere near as ergonimcally pleasing, did exactly the same job as the one I spent 8 quid on at Halfords.
Poundland certainly has its uses.
For things like that, Poundland can be good especially if you're in a hurry, but the internet is usually better except for the very cheapest items (I spent something like £1.20 for an HDMI cable a year or two ago, though that did include delivery to my home).
I don't think I'd want to plug anything of value into that £1 USB car charger.
I would guess they compared products on offer against Poundland prices, because people go to Poundland because they want to save money. If the same people went to a normal supermarket, I'm sure they would choose the products on offer there rather than those at full price.
Therefore it is perfectly fair to use supermarket store offers when comparing against a chain like Poundland which has a varying range of products at what they say is a discount, when supermarkets are doing the same thing but are often a lot cheaper when the supermarket discounts them, but the supermarkets also sell them at full price when not on offer.
I don't even have an Asda near me so constantly referring to the special Asda offer price seemed a bit irrelevant to me.
The claim that people go to poundland to save money was something the show was clearly trying to portray but I'm not convinced. Most people I know shop around and buy what they think is a good price, can't say I know anyone who thinks everything in poundland is cheaper much like how not everyone thinks everything in Asda is cheaper.
The people they interviewed didn't seem to be all that bright, like it's their god given right that everything in poundland has to be cheaper and if it isn't they are getting ripped off.
the difference is, prices at Poundland are always £1....yes sometimes ASDA, Tesco etc has a special offer on, but normally their prices are more expensive
I don't even have an Asda near me so constantly referring to the special Asda offer price seemed a bit irrelevant to me.
The claim that people go to poundland to save money was something the show was clearly trying to portray but I'm not convinced. Most people I know shop around and buy what they think is a good price, can't say I know anyone who thinks everything in poundland is cheaper much like how not everyone thinks everything in Asda is cheaper.
The people they interviewed didn't seem to be all that bright, like it's their god given right that everything in poundland has to be cheaper and if it isn't they are getting ripped off.
If you're not looking for a bargain, why would you shop in somewhere like Poundland which has a limited and varying range of items for sale, instead of a big supermarket which always has everything?
Asda, Tesco, Sainsburys, Morrisons, they all do the same type of discounts and most people who are within easy reach of a Poundland will be within reach of at least one of those big supermarkets.
I would guess they compared products on offer against Poundland prices, because people go to Poundland because they want to save money. If the same people went to a normal supermarket, I'm sure they would choose the products on offer there rather than those at full price.
Therefore it is perfectly fair to use supermarket store offers when comparing against a chain like Poundland which has a varying range of products at what they say is a discount, when supermarkets are doing the same thing but are often a lot cheaper when the supermarket discounts them, but the supermarkets also sell them at full price when not on offer.
In that case they should pick a competitor and stick to it, pick ASDA Vs poundland, and compare all prices between them, dont say "heres what poundland charge, now we are going to hunt down somewhere cheaper and show you that"
It was bad journalism, the wotsits they were keen to slag poundland off for were £1 for 5, ASDA are charging £1.48 for 6, they dont mention that is still better value than ASDA, just concentrating on the negative.
Journalism is supposed to be about objectivity, the maker obviously had an agenda, that makes him a poor journalist.
I don't even have an Asda near me so constantly referring to the special Asda offer price seemed a bit irrelevant to me.
The claim that people go to poundland to save money was something the show was clearly trying to portray but I'm not convinced. Most people I know shop around and buy what they think is a good price, can't say I know anyone who thinks everything in poundland is cheaper much like how not everyone thinks everything in Asda is cheaper.
The people they interviewed didn't seem to be all that bright, like it's their god given right that everything in poundland has to be cheaper and if it isn't they are getting ripped off.
I agree, I don't shop in poundland often. but I have before for things like milk, tea bags, etc for work. Might cost 10-20p more for the odd item*, but it's convenient location saves time and let's you get back to work quicker. So I can only imagine that if your heading for the bus and pass a Poundland you would appreciate the convenience.
Also, as for the people, I think they were showing the extreme examples of people who really liked pound shops and were under the impression that they're great. I think if anyone came in and answered the "how often do you shop in poundland" question with "hmm... maybe a few times a year" they wouldn't really be using them to support the documentary.
I have also, on occaisions bought cans of coca cola from there too - cheapest in the area.
I've bought things like a proper stand up dvd of a comedian, which was fantastic value, books, tools, stationery, earphones etc... All of these purchases, I believe, offered good value for money, convenience and I was happy with them.
*although milk is cheaper than the supermarkets. But more expensive than Farmfoods or Aldi.
Asda, Tesco, Sainsburys, Morrisons, they all do the same type of discounts and most people who are within easy reach of a Poundland will be within reach of at least one of those big supermarkets.
In the case featured the bread was £1.00 at Asda but £1.35 at the other supermarkets.
Makes a lot more sense to compare the poundland price to the majority of supermarkets, not the one they found to be the cheapest. i.e. £1.00 vs £1.35.
If they're going to purposely pick out the items on offer in supermarkets, why didn't they pick out the items that are more expensive in the supermarkets to those in poundland? It was all one sided and clearly bias against poundland.
I can't believe how bad that documentary was.
Of all the bad things that happen in the world Poundland is somehow seen as something we should be seriously concerned about.
The guy was even deceptive in the way he approached people saying that Poundland said that it was the best value since 1990. No, the sign clearly said the best prices since 1990.
Which I suppose would be correct if that's the year they started and they charged £1.
I also hated the smugness of the guy too, with his unfunny sarcastic tone every time he tried to make out that he had caught them out on some major deception.
Awful. The worst documentary I've watched for a long time.
I also hated the smugness of the guy too, with his unfunny sarcastic tone every time he tried to make out that he had caught them out on some major deception.
The way he was cutting up that bread, it was as though he discovered gold, it was cringeworthy stuff.
But sometimes I appreciate the smaller packets and having to only pay a quid for it. eg medicenes, tablets etc. One learns from experience. The envelopes wont stick, the pens wont work, the sticky tape is half the quantity of other rolls, but then again youcan get dvds and cds for £1
Comments
Have to agree with you there, I had been hoping there would be at least some reference to poundlands "recruitment" techniques.
Despatches is not available on 4od... wonder why?
I bet the programme was originally a hour long but there was so much abso-crap in it that it was cut to this 30 mins. This could have been a caveat emptor 5 mins segment on Watchdog or some other consumer programme.
And how do you afford the petrol or bus fares to get to all the big stores?
I thought Panorama was going to be doing a similar show on shopping tonight, as the title was 'Price Tag Wars' but apparently it is just about the Palestinian / Israeli problems. :rolleyes:
They are probably made up of some nasty ingredients too. And they will cost next to nothing to make I'd expect too.
Still, Iagree they probably hunted them out. It was interesting how they avoiding a lot of truly good value things.
I hoped this was going to be a show with a little on how they got their stuff, a little on sales levels, a little on logistics etc.
It's almost as though they were working on behalf of Tesco and Asda.
Are the makers of this rubbish totally unaware that the big supermarkets use every trick in the book to confuse us into spending more than we intend to?
The two 'experts' were unbelievably pathetic. Do people really get paid good money to spout the kind of drivel they came out with?:eek:
It's called "merchandising" and is what all big retailers do.
Making people take a trolley by putting heavy stuff at the entrance, feeding the baked bread smell from the bakery ovens to the store entrance. putting kids toys and treats on lower shelves, sweets at the checkouts. etc etc
How many times have seen Tesco or Asda (to mention 2 shops from this program) have an offer like "2 for £3" when the items cost less than £1.50 each anyway.?
So the "truth" about the big retail shop Poundland.... is they behave like a big retail shop !!!
All the major supermarkets have lots of items discounted at any time, so why use the price average when a customer who wants to save money will be buying items in the supermarket when they are discounted?
I don't need to go to Poundland or similar stores to save money; I can save more by using the offers available in supermarkets pretty much continuously such that most every item purchased with a shelf-life of more than a couple of weeks will be bought at a significant discount when that is offered, and kept until I want to use it.
For common products that don't keep long such as bread, if you can't get Warburton or Hovis or whatever on offer when you want it, the supermarket generally has better value but equal quality own brands available anyway. You don't need a familiar name to get a good product.
Yes but it would be nice to actually pay a £ for the same item in another shop that is being sold are more than a £.
The warburton bread that was featured usually sells at £1.35, the presenter on the show kept comparing the poundland price to Asda's £1.00 offer which is wrong.
Surely he should be comparing it to Sainsburys, Tesco and Waitrose price which is a far more realistic price.
But the Panorama really highlighted how things are hotting up in the Middle East:
- BANG: Israel offers 2 for 1 on Diet Coke.
- BOOM: The Palestinians retaliate with 3 for 2 on Jaffa Cakes.
- POW: Israel escalates with half price own brand Corn Flakes.
- ZAP: Palestinian fighters hit back with cut price Kodak batteries.
- KAPOW: Israel floods the Gaza Strip with a special on Monster Munch (Pickled Onion flavour).
- SMASH: The Palestinians make menacing noises about cutting the price of Dettol.
- GAME OVER: Backed by the US, Israel offers DOUBLE Nectar points on all purchases.
However, for the discerning shopper they have some excellent high street prices.
A few days ago I needed an HDMI cable. Cost? Surprise, surprise - £1.
It did exactly the same job as the massively overpriced HDMI cable (something like £20-30) that it was sitting next to in the telly.
The USB car charger I bought from there, whilst nowhere near as ergonimcally pleasing, did exactly the same job as the one I spent 8 quid on at Halfords.
Poundland certainly has its uses.
I would guess they compared products on offer against Poundland prices, because people go to Poundland because they want to save money. If the same people went to a normal supermarket, I'm sure they would choose the products on offer there rather than those at full price.
Therefore it is perfectly fair to use supermarket store offers when comparing against a chain like Poundland which has a varying range of products at what they say is a discount, when supermarkets are doing the same thing but are often a lot cheaper when the supermarket discounts them, but the supermarkets also sell them at full price when not on offer.
For things like that, Poundland can be good especially if you're in a hurry, but the internet is usually better except for the very cheapest items (I spent something like £1.20 for an HDMI cable a year or two ago, though that did include delivery to my home).
I don't think I'd want to plug anything of value into that £1 USB car charger.
I don't even have an Asda near me so constantly referring to the special Asda offer price seemed a bit irrelevant to me.
The claim that people go to poundland to save money was something the show was clearly trying to portray but I'm not convinced. Most people I know shop around and buy what they think is a good price, can't say I know anyone who thinks everything in poundland is cheaper much like how not everyone thinks everything in Asda is cheaper.
The people they interviewed didn't seem to be all that bright, like it's their god given right that everything in poundland has to be cheaper and if it isn't they are getting ripped off.
If you're not looking for a bargain, why would you shop in somewhere like Poundland which has a limited and varying range of items for sale, instead of a big supermarket which always has everything?
Asda, Tesco, Sainsburys, Morrisons, they all do the same type of discounts and most people who are within easy reach of a Poundland will be within reach of at least one of those big supermarkets.
In that case they should pick a competitor and stick to it, pick ASDA Vs poundland, and compare all prices between them, dont say "heres what poundland charge, now we are going to hunt down somewhere cheaper and show you that"
It was bad journalism, the wotsits they were keen to slag poundland off for were £1 for 5, ASDA are charging £1.48 for 6, they dont mention that is still better value than ASDA, just concentrating on the negative.
Journalism is supposed to be about objectivity, the maker obviously had an agenda, that makes him a poor journalist.
I agree, I don't shop in poundland often. but I have before for things like milk, tea bags, etc for work. Might cost 10-20p more for the odd item*, but it's convenient location saves time and let's you get back to work quicker. So I can only imagine that if your heading for the bus and pass a Poundland you would appreciate the convenience.
Also, as for the people, I think they were showing the extreme examples of people who really liked pound shops and were under the impression that they're great. I think if anyone came in and answered the "how often do you shop in poundland" question with "hmm... maybe a few times a year" they wouldn't really be using them to support the documentary.
I have also, on occaisions bought cans of coca cola from there too - cheapest in the area.
I've bought things like a proper stand up dvd of a comedian, which was fantastic value, books, tools, stationery, earphones etc... All of these purchases, I believe, offered good value for money, convenience and I was happy with them.
*although milk is cheaper than the supermarkets. But more expensive than Farmfoods or Aldi.
In the case featured the bread was £1.00 at Asda but £1.35 at the other supermarkets.
Makes a lot more sense to compare the poundland price to the majority of supermarkets, not the one they found to be the cheapest. i.e. £1.00 vs £1.35.
If they're going to purposely pick out the items on offer in supermarkets, why didn't they pick out the items that are more expensive in the supermarkets to those in poundland? It was all one sided and clearly bias against poundland.
Of all the bad things that happen in the world Poundland is somehow seen as something we should be seriously concerned about.
The guy was even deceptive in the way he approached people saying that Poundland said that it was the best value since 1990. No, the sign clearly said the best prices since 1990.
Which I suppose would be correct if that's the year they started and they charged £1.
I also hated the smugness of the guy too, with his unfunny sarcastic tone every time he tried to make out that he had caught them out on some major deception.
Awful. The worst documentary I've watched for a long time.
The way he was cutting up that bread, it was as though he discovered gold, it was cringeworthy stuff.