Do you really need to visit shops on Boxing Day?

[kolpa]

Before you decide to go to half the stores which are open today, think - do you actually need anything? If not, stay away from them.

Those supermarkets that are open would have very few deliveries. Perhaps milk n bread as majority of these are delivered by the bakery and dairy. It depends on if they worked yesterday. As some distribution centres were closed yesterday.

I personally believe that people only shop because the shops are open. If some were open yesterday, they would have gone in.

A good number of the retail workers today are people who don’t have a car who usually bus it in. But no buses means either get someone to drive them in or get taxi/uber which are 1.5-2 times more expensive.

So if you can survive a day of visiting about half the stores which are open today, stay at home or go to others’ homes.

My local garage sells those things and are open as is the family run corner shop. I don't need Tesco's to be open. And why would you go to Next for those things - last time I looked they didn't sell either bread or tampax.

I confess to having been in TK Maxx today - my adult son only bought 1 pair of clean socks with him as I always get him some for his stocking - this year I didn’t- he could have gone I guess but opted to walk the lovely cockapoo we are looking after instead

There is justification for emergency services working on Boxing Day (and Christmas Day etc) because they are needed, we do not stop being ill etc because it's Christmas. There is no justification for Tesco's or Morrison's et al opening. If you need tampax or loo roll then garage shops tend to be open - they are franchises, I think - as do 'newsagents'/corner shops. You don't need Next, or Home Bargains at all.
Indeed, were I to need a box of tampax the last thing I'd want would be to drive to a supermarket!

Well I went to the supermarket today - needed more items to last until Sunday, and my cat needed more food. Much quieter and easier to go on boxing day rather than Christmas Eve.

There is justification for emergency services working on Boxing Day

And don’t forgot entertainers, you said there was justification for that. Just not shops.

Being a fully functioning adult I’ll decide if I want to enter any shops or not today.

So in my local area the following are open

David Lloyd/gyms
Cinemas
Pubs
Restaurants (independents & chains)

Waitrose & some of the independents are shut.

But some posters have a problem that the Sainsbury’s local & Costcutter is open?

I'll explain, then. Places of entertainment are places where people meet and socialise as part of Christmas celebrations and those who work in those industries are aware that a lot of their business is times like Christmas and take that on board (DS used to work for a brewer, and staff were needed all through Christmas and New Year, a very busy time, so there was a rolling rota - no-one ever worked a Christmas/New Year two years running, for example). But a shop is just about buying stuff. They don't need to be open. We now have freezers for the bread, can buy loo roll in packs of 24 and large boxes of tampax (which are also sold by garages which do tend to be open since people are travelling). I can't see why large supermarkets, clothes shops, book shops etc need to be open over Christmas - what can anyone possibly need that cannot be bought at the family-run corner shop, which tends to be open? And such small businesses lose out on those sales if the supermarkets are open. I note that my local Aldi is shut today - apparently they all are.

You’ll be wrong then!

@Grammarnut The point I was making is if retail staff can’t hack working one specific day then they certainly wouldn’t hack working Christmas Day. And there’s also plenty of none emergency services/care staff that work Christmas Day as well but they don’t seem to bitch or like the poor perfect retail staff do.

someone might, something might have broken etc which means they need a shop that’s bigger than a local shop but yeah they need to wait don’t they because poor retail staff who can’t cope working on one day need time off. do they say sorry we can’t fees you today as we can’t go buy a new microwave or is it okay for hospitality staff to work Boxing Day as well as Christmas Day

i can guarantee many of these people moaning about working Boxing Day would in the pub not giving a flying fuck about them working. After all pubs aren’t essential now are they?

I have a justification for going to the shops today. I needed to get out the house for my sanity (DH has sprung inviting half the neighborhood around tonight since the shops closed on Christmas Eve which I don't mind but did say that he should have told me sooner).

Plenty of people (women) will want to go to the shops today to avoid actual being killed though.

I think the risk of domestic violence over Christmas is a pretty decent justification for shops to open.

Well, if an item breaks on Christmas Day they will do without since large shops must shut by law. And the point about retail is they DON'T NEED to be open. Careworkers, nurses, doctors, coastguards, much of the army etc do NEED to be working since those things are needed all the time - I don't need to be in Tesco's on Boxing Day and nor does anyone else. And if people did not insist they needed to shop on Boxing Day shops would stay shut and retail staff get a proper break.
If I worked in a pub or a brewerery I'd expect to work some Christmas and Boxing Days (because these are the times when such businesses make most of their income), but why do I need to be selling socks?

Places of entertainment are places where people meet and socialise as part of Christmas celebrations and those who work in those industries are aware that a lot of their business is times like Christmas and take that on board (DS used to work for a brewer, and staff were needed all through Christmas and New Year, a very busy time, so there was a rolling rota - no-one ever worked a Christmas/New Year two years running, for example). But a shop is just about buying stuff.

This is nonsensical, Christmas is a bit of a big deal in retail & many workers are aware of that. Going to a pub or a cinema is also about buying stuff, the stuff they sell isn’t free.

Can you explain it more clearly because it doesn’t make sense?

@Grammarnut why do you think MNs should be open today? Does that fall under your socialising category?

Yes this is me. I live on my own and my whole family has died. Additionally, my dog had to be put to sleep a couple of weeks ago, so I no longer receive social interaction from walking the dog. I am feeling very down in the dumps and considering going to the supermarket just to get out of the house. I'm not an old lady or anything and there are probably lots of other people out there in a similar situation who just want to get out of the house for a while.

Getting to a garage isn't easy if you don't have a car and who mentioned anything about NEXT? what are you on about? I never said Next sold Tampax or bread so you are making zero sense.

Going out for "entertainment" on Boxing Day is totally unnecessary too- you could equally argue people can watch TV if they are bored, they don't require a pub. In fact, to counter drink driving its best the pubs are shut.

Stop pretending to justify your own selfish choices whilst reserving the right to have a go at others. Its not a good look and makes you look very silly.

these are the times when such businesses make most of their income)

When do you think retailers make the majority of their money? It’s not a trick question…

I’ve just been to Tesco as have family coming tomorrow and my fridge is too small to have got everything I needed for yesterday and tomorrow before Christmas. It was very quiet, and very well stocked.

Also why do you care whether people go shopping on Boxing Day?!

I avoid the shops normally but just had to nip to Tescoo Express as DH used 12 eggs to make scrambled eggs yesterday🙄.

You are making zero sense. Pubs DONT NEED to be open

Laughing at the rule that it’s okay to buy a pint of beer on Boxing Day but not a pair of socks.

But people don’t have to manage it
…because some shops are open

I know, that was my thought. I imagine many people end up in retail work not because it was a burning career ambition, but because there weren’t any other jobs available, particularly in times of high unemployment. I know a number of graduates who came out with decent degrees but despite their efforts, weren’t able to secure work relating to their degree subjects and ended up in retail.

I’ve worked in retail myself when I was younger and know that there was no say in what you worked over the Christmas period- even if you tried to request Christmas Eve or Boxing Day off it was likely to be declined with a laugh because it being a busy time of year. Christmas Eve I can understand, but Boxing Day doesn’t have to be necessary. Other countries manage shops to close for two consecutive days out of respect to giving as many people as possible time with their families so we could manage it too, even if it meant being a tiny bit inconvenienced.

I know let's shut everything, pubs, restaurants, cinemas, bowling alleys. No one needs to go to them. No one needs a newspaper, or to watch the news or listen to the radio so maybe we should just shut them down for two days. People should make sure they have enough petrol so petrol stations don't need to be open either.

No one has justified why retail staff are more important than bar staff, or waiting staff, or anyone else who works over Christmas. The patronising justification that retail staff are poorly paid or have family is getting tiresome.

It’s a very pertinent point - we have a really lovely rented house but the fridge/ freezer is modernist but it’s not huge - and the very large chicken was taking a fair bit of the fridge- nowhere really to put a small separate freezer either - after my fab American fridge freezer we had in Denmark it’s a bit of a downgrade!! It’s ok rest of year , but at Xmas I do struggle a bit if I’m having family at all