The Matt Monro 100 Club

mariana44 · Post by **mariana44** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 12:10 pm

Hi Paul--thats a date then.. There is a very charming and quaint English tearoom called "The Nutmeg Tree"---they use sugar lumps and tongs--very refined--it is in the Victoria Centre--just a small compact shopping centre--and the centre also has a Boots, a Woolworths, a Card Shop, and an HMV--plus a BHS--and a M & S---the very essentials of shopping.

No Waitrose--but the M& S food department has just been expanded -and it is fabulous.

We could even do "Elevenses" too!! Time permitting.!!

Marian

Marian · Post by **Marian** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 12:11 pm

Oh, do you mean like this

Marian

mariana44 · Post by **mariana44** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 12:13 pm

Hi Marian---yes exactly like that---but with fewer words---see how easy it is???

Marian [2]

ROBERT M. · Post by **ROBERT M.** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 5:19 pm

Marian · Post by **Marian** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 5:38 pm

Well, now you've made my day Robert......

:lol

Marian.

michduncg · Post by **michduncg** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 8:06 pm

Exactly Marian - see your 7% of the way to your 200 figure already!Should be there in 8.5 days at this rate!

Marian in Tunbridge Wells - I can't believe that you haven't got a Waitrose! I shall write to their MD straightaway!

Paul - as a rather proud employee of John Lewis, which owns Waitrose, I am glad that Waitrose fame has reached the USA!!

Maybe we should send you back Walmart!

paul jh · Post by **paul jh** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 9:49 pm

A Bhs, M&S, and HMV ... Tunbridge Wells goes to the top of my list!

But probably most of the towns on my list have a Boots, Woolworths, HMV, a card shop, Bhs, and M&S. Looking forward to the tea at The Nutmeg Tree one day, Marian.

I became a Waitrose fan after shopping at the location in Southampton. We don't have such nice small grocery stores in the US. I love the free samples! Walmart in the UK? I knew they owned Asda, which I refuse to visit, but I didn't know the big Walmart stores were in the UK. Hopefully, the English public will prefer the small shops and Walmart will go back to the US, where I will continue to avoid them.

michduncg · Post by **michduncg** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 10:28 pm

Hi Paul - I was referring to Asda when I was talking about Walmart, didn't know how clued up you were on our grocery trade! Interestingly, Asda (which markets itself as part of the Walmart family) is in a slight decline at the moment, losing its No 2 position back to Sainsburys, and experiencing negative growth at the moment so it shows that the Britsh public has some taste! A lot of its strength has actually come from its non-food products, and its food quality leaves,in my own experience, a lot to be desired. Ironic when it was actually set up by Yorkshire farmers in the 1st place. I don't think we'll have the same scenario in the UK as in Germany, which Walmart has now quit after intense local competition. Waitrose is currently the fastest growing UK supermarket, with sales nearly 10% at the moment. Yes, it is a little more expensive, but the fresh food quality is indeed fantastic. Its a known phenemenon among london property developers that having a Waitrose open in a neighborhood actually increases property values in the locality!

mariana44 · Post by **mariana44** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 11:42 pm

Hi Paul--yes I would agree that most towns have those shops you mention---I just like the Tunbridge Wells ones because they are all so close to each other under the same roof.

Mike-re your comments about Waitrose--there is one in nearby Tonbridge [6 miles], plus one in little Paddock Wood, which is where I live--[a village still, until just recently attained town status.] So it is surprising that Tunbridge Wells, which is much more up-market does not have a Waitrose. However, I rarely shop there--I always go to Sainsburys-even if I am doing on-line shopping.

But my sister does her on-line shopping with "Ocado" [Waitrose], and insists it is the best of online shopping too.

I have been to a Walmart store in US--an experience not to be forgotten !!

Marian

jon · Post by **jon** » Fri Oct 06, 2006 9:13 am

Waitrose tend to be in more upmarket areas, it's true. There is a very large Waitrose in the arcade at Canary Wharf in London, where I work, and I occasionally go there when I feel like treating myself and have a bit of extra cash, though mainly I go to Tesco at the other end of the arcade. I don't know what it's like in Waitrose stores generally but in the store in Canary Wharf their card machines in which customers write in their PIN numbers are very poorly positioned and you can see everything people key in. It wouldn't surprise me if there have been some PIN card thefts there. I would never pay with a card in that branch of Waitrose.

michduncg · Post by **michduncg** » Fri Oct 06, 2006 8:00 pm

I think the assumption is that if you work at Canary Wharf you can afford to shop at Waitrose!

It was an amazing concept when it opened and won several international retail design awards. The assortment of goods is geared very much to the 'city slicker'. Of course its easy for me say that Waitrose is best,as I get 12% off everything! I just prefer the focus on food at Waitrose, and the fact that it always seems a bit more civilised than other supermarkets. Jon - do you mean the PIN machines with arms on them, that reach across the end of the checkout that prints out seperate little receipt? - if so, then these are temporary stand alone terminals, and will be replaced early in 2007 when Waitrose Point of Sale technology is upgraded

mariana44 · Post by **mariana44** » Tue Nov 14, 2006 12:04 am

Hi John---well no card here--but many congratulations on your first 100 posts. Many more to come, I hope, with all your knowledge of music to enlighten us. Very well done !!

Marian · Post by **Marian** » Tue Nov 14, 2006 12:09 am

Congratulations John on your first 100 posts. Soon be well on the way to your next century. Well done!

Marian.

paul jh · Post by **paul jh** » Tue Nov 14, 2006 1:25 am

Congratulations John on your 100 postings. You are one of the first persons to join this forum (way before most of us) and you finally have 100 postings. Now if you could just submit easier lyrics for us to guess...

Angela51 · Post by **Angela51** » Tue Nov 14, 2006 2:23 am

CONGRATULATIONS....John