It's been a while coming (sorry!) but here, at last, are the initial results of the survey on shopping habits in Rhuthun/Ruthin, post Tesco (with thanks to all who took part—I'd say between a quarter & a third of regular readers did so).Exactly five years after Tesco, we wanted to know what affect it'd had on the town and our shopping habits. Indeed, this was one of the direct questions we asked in the survey.
Has Tesco changed your shopping habits? (above)
Nearly two fifths of respondents (38%) shopped previously at the Co-op or the former Somerfield, before Tesco arrived. 11 per cent stated that, beforehand, they used town traders.Compare this to the situation today. We asked where readers currently regularly shop for food/groceries. Four fifths of respondents stated that they visited more than one shop or location, the most popular being Tesco Rhuthun and the Co-op. A fifth stated that they exclusively shopped in just one store.
Where do respondents currently most shop? (Above) (does not include nil responses)
In terms of where respondents shopped *most*, two-thirds (63%) chose Tesco Rhuthun, while a fifth (21%) preferred the Co-op. About one eighth (11%) stated that they shopped outside Rhuthun.No one shopped for food the *most* in the town centre, though 12% felt that they shopped for food in town at some point (with half of these shopping occasionally in town choosing Tesco for most of their shopping; and the other half at the Co-op).
Interestingly, nearly a quarter (23%) of people stated that Tesco had made no difference to their shopping habits. Of these, nearly two-thirds (61%) continued to shop at the Co-op.
Of those who stated that Tesco had made no difference to their shopping habits, nearly two-fifths (38%) shopped at Tesco at some point though clearly this wasn’t their main shopping destination.
One of the main perceived benefits of Tesco was that people should no longer need to shop for food out of town. By inference, after Tesco profits, this meant that local money would stay in the community, both in terms of employment at Tesco and people visiting the town more. Between a quarter & a third of those who answered the survey (28%) stated that they used to go out of town to shop but no longer did so. Nearly an eighth (11%) still shop out of town, three fifths of whom work out of the area so, again by inference, they can more easily shop away from Rhuthun.
How often do people visit Tesco? (above)
We also wondered how often people visited Tesco compared to visiting the town. Two thirds of respondents (64%) stated that they shopped in Tesco either every day or once/twice a week. By contrast, fewer than half (46%) said they shopped or browsed in town with the same regularity.
How often do people visit town? (above)
As to whether you felt that Tesco has affected the town adversely or not; and whether Tesco is perceived to be good for the town, or not—that will have to follow.