Author: Leigh Sparks
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May 2023 – Two new articles and a book chapter noted on the Journal Articles page
February 2023 – New piece for The Conversation on online retailing (see commentaries tab)
January 2023 – Roll over of some areas for new year, plus The Conversation piece on Christmas trading updates published (see commentaries tab) and main posts
December 2022 – End of year tidying up and re-arrangement, including link to EDAS podcast on places and towns (see presentations tab)
Top Posts & Pages
- London's Welsh Dairies: The Welsh Milk Trade
- Transformative Food Retailing, Data and Consumers
- Twenty One Years of UK Grocery Market Share
- Waaaagaaamaaamaaa - Tesco and Booker spring a surpise (perhaps)
- Pontypool vs Penarth: Rugby and The High Street and Town of 1951
- UK Grocery Market Share 1997-2019
- Time Out in Lisbon: Part One
- Ghost Signs and Retailing
- Public Health, Taxation and Food Retailing
- Returning Home
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Category Archives: Alcohol
Essential vs Non-Essential Retailing
At the start of lockdown in March, there was a division of retailing into essential and non-essential retailing, with a secondary division into physical and online channels. There was some grumbling from some retailers (Sports Direct, Waterstones) who felt they … Continue reading
Posted in Alcohol, Closure, Essential Retailing, Government, Independents, Lockdown, Non-Essential Retailing, Non-food retailing, Online Retailing, Regulation, Scottish Government, Uncategorized, Wales
Tagged Covid-19, Essential, Independent Retailing, Lockdown, Non-Essential Retailing, Regulation, Retail
5 Comments
‘Writing the Rules of the Game’: Non-market Strategy, commercial interests and health policy
The UK Government has recently published a set of proposals and statements about restricting commercial activity as part of an approach to tackle obesity. We have also seen the first stage of a ‘National’ Food Strategy be published. In Scotland … Continue reading
Posted in Academics, Alcohol, Consumers, Diet and Health, Food Retailing, Food Standards Scotland, Health, Healthcare Retail Standard, Hospital Shops, Large Store Levy, Markets, Non-market Strategy, Politicians, Profits, Promotion, Public Health, Public Health lev, Public Policy, Regulation, Retail Levy, Scottish Government, Sugar Tax, Uncategorized
Tagged Alcohol, Diet and Health, Food Standards Scotland, Non-market Strategy, Public Health, Regulation, Retailing, Sugar Tax, Tobacco
2 Comments
Making Hospital Shops Healthier
Over the last seven or so years, for a variety of personal reasons, I have seen more of the insides of hospitals than I have wanted to. I am not alone in this at my life stage of course. Those … Continue reading
Posted in Alcohol, Behavioural Economics, Consumer Lifestyle, Diet and Health, Food Retailing, Food Standards Scotland, Government, Health, Healthcare Retail Standard, Healthy Living, Hospital, Hospital Shops, Institute for Retail Studies, NHS Health Scotland, Promotion, Public Health lev, Regulation, Research, Retailers, Scottish Government, Scottish Grocers Federation, Tobacco, Uncategorized, University of Stirling, Well being
Tagged Diet and Health, Government Policy, Healthcare Retail Standard, Healthy Eating, Minimum Unit Pricing, Promotions, Public Health, Research, Retail, Scottish Government, Social Engineers, Tobacco Display Ban, University of Stirling
3 Comments
Fighting Fit? Independent Convenience Stores and the Public Health Agenda
The last 2019 Cross Party Group for Independent Convenience Stores, held last week, was a cracker. With all the excitement of the AGM (not really), it was almost too much to have three excellent presentations on retailing and the public … Continue reading
Posted in Academics, Alcohol, Best Start Foods, Convenience stores, Cross Party Group, Deposit Return Scheme, Diet and Health, Food Retailing, Food Standards Scotland, Government, Healthcare Retail Standard, Healthy Living, Independents, Internet shopping, Legislation, Local Retailers, Politicians, Products, Regulation, Retail leadership, Retail Policy, Scotland, Scottish Government, Scottish Grocers Federation, Scottish Local Retailer, Scottish Retailing, Small Shops, Sugar Tax, Uncategorized, University of Stirling
Tagged Best Start, Cross Party Group, Deposit Return Scheme, Food Standards Scotland, Healthcare Retail Standard, Healthy Living, Minimum Pricing, Policy, Promotions, Regulation, Scottish Government, Scottish Grocers Federation, Scottish Parliament, Tobacco, Unhealthy foods, University of Stirling
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Trading Places: our Town and Country Planning Columns
In 2012 Anne Findlay and I attempted to take over from Professor Cliff Guy who had provided the Trading Places columns in Town and Country Planning for 12 years. In the subsequent 6 years we have produced 23 columns, but … Continue reading
Posted in Academics, Alcohol, BIDS, Bill Grimsey, Bookmakers, Consumer Change, Consumers, Farm Shops, Food Retailing, Government, High Streets, Internet shopping, Mary Portas, Places, Planning, Pop-Up Shops, Proactive Planning, Rates, Resilience, Retail Change, Retail Parks, Retail Planning, Retail Policy, Social Inequality, Town & Country PLanning, Town Centre Review, Town Centres, Uncategorized
Tagged BIDs, Bookmakers, Business rates, Consumer change, Farm Shops, High Streets, Obesity, Planning, Pop-Up Shops, Rates, Retail, Retail Change, retail parks, Retail Planning, TCPA, Town and Country Planning, Town Centres
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Taste the Landscape with Scotrail
I’ve always enjoyed travelling by train. Maybe this stems from my grandfather being a blacksmith by trade and when I was young seeing him working on steam engines in Tondu sheds. Or perhaps it comes from being packed off on … Continue reading
Fight Time? The Boxing Day Petition
The issue of opening hours for shops is something that has been an ever-present during my time as an academic. The product-based absurdities of the late 1970s and early 1980s were eventually swept away as opening hours were modernised and … Continue reading
Posted in Alcohol, Black Friday, Boxing Day, Campaigns, Christmas, Consumer Lifestyle, Cyber Monday, Employees, Employment, Employment practices, Government, Internet shopping, Legislation, Online Retailing, Opening Hours, Petitions, Regulation, Small Shops, Supermarket
Tagged Alcohol, Boxing Day, Christmas, Delivery, Employees, Legislation, Online retailing, Opening Hours, Petitions, Supermarkets
6 Comments
Gardens and Gin
I sometimes wonder what visitors make of Scotland. When I first moved up we did a lot of the tourist things, as people and family visited, but as life goes on it is all too easy to look to further … Continue reading
Posted in Alcohol, Architecture, Buildings, Community, Distillery, Edinburgh, Festivals, Gardens, Gin, Historic Shops, Royal Mile, Scotland Food and Drink, Spaces, Urban History
Tagged Distillery Tours, Edinburgh, Gardens, Gin, Pickerings, Royal Mile, Walking Tours
2 Comments
What Are Retailers For?
My recent visit to Poland and the symposium on sustainable development discussion brought back memories from my first visit to Poland in 1987 and discussions we had there around retail location and the purpose of retailing. In that not quite … Continue reading
Posted in Alcohol, Diet and Health, Legislation, Plastic Bags, Retail Levy, Scotland, Scottish Government, Tobacco
Tagged Alcohol, Health Levy, Legislation, Planning, Plastic bags, Policy, Scottish Government, Tobacco
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