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AIBU?

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Original poster

Waitrose are not that nice...don't be fooled

37 replies

justcross · 19/12/2011 16:49

Have just heard that the lovely kind Waitrose have been charging suppliers for not delivering exactly what they ordered. This may sound a bit reasonable, except that the order comes 18 hours before they want the goods delivered...fine for baked beans but not for goods that have to be prepared at the time due to shelf-life. They also charge for complaints, and are apparently the most unfriendly of all the supermarkets!
Read this quickly, as I suspect that this may be disappeared by the scary supermarket fairies!!!

OP posts:
IndigoBell · 19/12/2011 16:51

Asking for something 18 hours before you need should be quite normal these days, and very good practice.

It's part of 'lean' and Toyota are the king of it. (Also Zara and Dell are often quoted examples)

There's a car plant in the US somewhere which tells it's suppliers what it needs 2 hours before it needs them delivered.

It keeps your costs way down, which is good for everyone.

Fayrazzled · 19/12/2011 16:53

I can't believe at all that Waitrose is the worst of all the supermarkets. Don't believe it for one second. Whoever gave you that intelligence justcross has obviously never dealt with Tesco!

IndigoBell · 19/12/2011 16:53

It's called Just In Time

amichrissima · 19/12/2011 17:00

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

squeakytoy · 19/12/2011 17:14

Very few goods have such a short shelf life that an 18 hour turnaround would cause problems for. The suppliers agree to this in their contracts with the supermarkets.

Iggly · 19/12/2011 17:15

Do you work for Tescos OP? Hmm

HeidiKat · 19/12/2011 17:16

Supermarkets aren't there to be nice, they are there to make money. Most supernmarkets deal with their suppliers in a way that puts the supermarket at an advantage to make maximum profit, why would waitrose be any different just because they are a bit posh?

TheSkiingGardener · 19/12/2011 17:18

I know someone who supplies Waitrose. They (waitrose) are lovely.

QueenofJacksDreams · 19/12/2011 17:19

Makes me laugh at how you're all defending one supermarket as since its 'posh' it can't have bad practices Grin

slavetofilofax · 19/12/2011 17:20

I don't see the problem.

SantasStrapon · 19/12/2011 17:20

Living where I do, I can tell you that Tescos' name is mud, and suppliers consider themselves lucky if the supply Waitrose. Waitrose and M&S are the ones they aim to supply.

NinkyNonker · 19/12/2011 17:22

Apparently Co-Op and Sainsburys are two of the worst offenders when it comes to supplier treatment.

Harmoanious · 19/12/2011 17:23

What's the shelf life of the product?
I can't think of anything that would need to be prepared at the last minute, unless it literally has 2 or 3 days life on it.

Jennyrosity · 19/12/2011 17:24

Waitrose is part of the John Lewis Partnership, meaning that all of its permanent staff are partners in the business and get a share in its profits. Therefore they are "nicer", from an employment practices perspective, than the other supermarkets.

LePruneDeMaTante · 19/12/2011 17:25

Right I will never shop in Waitrose again
[lies]

Avantia · 19/12/2011 17:25

Good - if you order something and you don't deliver exactly what the customer ordered then what is wrong with penalising the supplier ?

They may be tough with their suppliers but is it because they want to and do give good customer service . Perhaps other supermarkets could learn from it.

Good attempt OP in trying to bad a mouth a very good company .Hmm

signet · 19/12/2011 17:26

waitrose were always one of the best for us to deliver our goods to. Sainsburys were the absolute pits. Very demanding, very rude and incredibly awkward. Waitrose were a pleasure to work with. Can't remember what the co-op were like, and the rest were fairly run of the mill.

SantasStrapon · 19/12/2011 17:26

I can only think of something like sandwiches.Xmas Confused

Tescos are definitely the worst, a lot of farmers up here won't deal with them at all.

bemybebe · 19/12/2011 17:28

I don't care if Waitrose is "not nice" to its suppliers (according to who??), I care that it is nice to me.

Avantia · 19/12/2011 17:30

Let's all ban Waitrose - bollocks that they are good to their customers ! They must be nicer to their suppliers even if the suppliers fuck up !

Boycott Waitrose - someone start a online petition !

Harmoanious · 19/12/2011 17:34

Are other supermarkets more forgiving of supplier mistakes then?

AFuckingFestiveKnackeredWoman · 19/12/2011 17:36

They are a business. Are they just supposed to say 'oh well deliver whenever and do as you wish'
They would go bankrupt very quickly if they did

Avantia · 19/12/2011 17:39

Anyway OP where did you ' just hear' this crap from ?

hocuspontas · 19/12/2011 17:45

Sounds like you have an axe to grind op judging by other threads.

PattySimcox · 19/12/2011 17:49

Well a supplier messing up does affect the service that the supermarket can offer.

And as is often seen on here, when a supermarket messes up the customer gets a bit annoyed and often expect recompense.

Last week Waitrose mixed up our order with someone elses, I realised just after the van had left. I rang the call centre who were apologetic and within the hour the driver was back with the right stuff and gave me two bottles of wine to make up for the inconvenience.

They deliver high levels of service and expect the same from their suppliers.