Supermarket denies reports of mayhem
Closing down sale ‘riots’ claim
Published:
SUPERMARKET chain Somerfield yesterday denied that a closing down sale at its store in Orkney caused riots as shoppers grabbed bargains.
It was reported that customers abused staff and fought over discounted products at the store in Kirkwall, now owned by Tesco.
And a member of staff, who did not want to be named, said the last day’s trading at the Somerfield store was the worst of her working life.
She claimed shoppers were stealing items from each other’s trolleys and arguing with staff in an attempt to get them to reduce goods that were not discounted.
But company spokesman Pete Williams yesterday insisted it had been considerably less dramatic.
He said it was a difficult balance to ensure the store was stocked with as much fresh food and as many top-selling items as possible right up until the last minute, while reducing the amount of stock that had to be removed when it closed.
Mr Williams said: “Over the last couple of weeks, we did significantly discount products so we did not have to ship them back down the supply chain.
“We did see some enthusiasm from local customers for these sale items. There were some real bargains so lots of people were stocking up, but I don’t think it was the mayhem that was reported.
“There was no fighting in the aisles or abuse of staff. Our customers were just very enthusiastic to get hold of some bargains.”
He added that Somerfield ceased trading at the Kirkwall store on May 3.
