Carrefour Udon Thani

[willyboy]

Anything that gives the customer more choice has got to be good hasn't it? =D>

[bumper]

Won't be good until they put a BK and Subway in

Truthfully unless it really is idifferent it just creates competetion for the same money. That won't mean lower prices here, but harm to others already supplying the product.

[douglas]

Hi,
I say it will not be good until they put in a adequate car park. Today still parking on both sides of the highway, very bad. Store not even one quarter full at 1000Hrs.
Also can not get pickled onions, so the staff tell me, they no have, also branston pickle and mango chutney, considering all the mangos grown in Thailand i am supprised. Can get all of these up at the small shop just before the friendship bridge. Will still shop there. There cheese selection was not much better.
As for BK etc.. How can anyone eat or rave about their rubbish. Seen in the states, in the slaughter houses how they use high pressure hoses to get everything of the bone and the spine for Mac. or BK for this product and the rubbish they mix with it, i would not touch one of there products. Why o why can you not make your own beefburgers, not the Mac. or BK rubbish, burgers with real meat and real taste and far better for you. There chips are also frozen crap, nothing like a proper chipped potato like they do in U.K. I must say that the steaks in the states are great but they still can not cook GOOD chips.
Cheers Doug.

[willyboy]

Carrefour will bring added customer choice to Udon, - choice in terms of a different and wider range of products, as well as an alternative location, which can only be good for the customer. I think it's main challenge will be on price.

[Marmite The Dog]

I was just wondering why someone life Carrefour would stock expensive, niche items like good cheese and other western fayre when there are only a handful of people (relatively speaking) who would buy it?

Carrefour is a business, not a charity.

[mortiboy]

Also can not get pickled onions, so the staff tell me, they no have, also branston pickle and mango chutney,

Mod Note - some text transferred to new thread - "Chutney & Pickled Onions".

[trubrit]

Having so far concentrated my comments on the food contents available I think it is time to mention the actual shopping experience.First the car park.Obviously not large enough. I was in there about half hour after opening and it was already filling up. Strangely enough , this wasn't reflected by the amount of customers in the actual store. I can only presume that the tenants of the other shops and their staff had parked there already. It was also noticeable that several samlors were parked in the bays. This doesn't happen in the competition stores. They have to stay outside. Whoever decided the traffic flow? What a mess with exiting vehicles having to join the queue of incoming traffic to get out.But as drivers don't know whether you are coming or going they are reluctant to let you in, in case you grab their space. As for double parking.You have to be fit enough to push a 5 ton vehicle away to get out. That's if your lucky and the driver hasn't left the handbrake on, as happened to a car near mine yesterday afternoon.The hapless motorists that were blocked in could be heard remonstrating with the poor car park guy that they had been waiting half hour. A major improvement could happen if the traffic flow was changed, but in the long term it looks like a bigger car park will be needed.
Now inside the store.The aisles, especially near the bakery and butchery are far too small.One person waiting to be served means their trolley fills half the available space, meaning that two way traffic attempts to navigate through a single area, with the obvious consequences. Should two stop, it's deadlocked.
I am sad to see already they have started leaving pallets full of produce, some empty, in the aisles.
You need the skills of a Grand Prix driver to navigate the consequental chicane created.
Now the staff. In general they are a nice cheerful bunch, but is there a stock control system in place?
I was looking for custard powder. Looked in the obvious places. Gave up and asked one of the staff carrying one of those red communicators to check availability for me.Thinking she could instantly find out the stock position. Oh no. I was pointed to where I had already looked and told if it isn't there we don't have any.
These are obviously early days so I hope I can look forward to an improvement soon, but if not I don;t think I can promise to be a regular customer, however attractive the food is.

[saint]

i read all of that , and basically what your saying , could of been said in two words , IT SUCKS .

[trubrit]

i read all of that , and basically what your saying , could of been said in two words , IT SUCKS .

I prefer to be more constructive with my criticisms

[fatbas***d]

I was just wondering why someone life Carrefour would stock expensive, niche items like good cheese and other western fayre when there are only a handful of people (relatively speaking) who would buy it?

Carrefour is a business, not a charity.

Hey Mutt, Who determines that its a Niche product ? The folks around here in my village really enjoy a bit of good Stilton or a nice slice of Gorgonzola.
They are poor but have style.

[trubrit]

I was just wondering why someone life Carrefour would stock expensive, niche items like good cheese and other western fayre when there are only a handful of people (relatively speaking) who would buy it?

Carrefour is a business, not a charity.

Hey Mutt, Who determines that its a Niche product ? The folks around here in my village really enjoy a bit of good Stilton or a nice slice of Gorgonzola.
They are poor but have style.

Its funny you should say that. On a couple of my recent visits when I was selecting what we would term Farang food, I have been asked by curious Thai's. What is it.? What does it taste like? After which they put it in their basket to try.
It seems to be a general assumption on here that we farangs are the only ones able to afford it.How wrong can that be?
We are but paupers compared to many local people.

[Marmite The Dog]

I was just wondering why someone life Carrefour would stock expensive, niche items like good cheese and other western fayre when there are only a handful of people (relatively speaking) who would buy it?

Carrefour is a business, not a charity.

Hey Mutt, Who determines that its a Niche product ? The folks around here in my village really enjoy a bit of good Stilton or a nice slice of Gorgonzola.
They are poor but have style.

The top dog at Tesco is a Banger and a friend, and I used to constantly hassle him about the lack of western products there. He said that they do introduce new items, but very gradually and only when then can be sure that the Thais would buy them. I'm sure Carrefour have a similar policy. 99.9% of customers are Thai and it is what they buy which is important to these stores, not what foreigners buy, and rightly so.

There are more and more small stores which cater to our more educated palette and those are the places we should be shopping at, in my opinion.

[jackspratt]

There are more and more small stores which cater to our more educated palette ................

They must be the folk on UM crying out for BK/McDonalds and Subway :-"

[fatbas***d]

The top dog at Tesco is a Banger and a friend, .

You dogs sure stick together
Anyway Marmers, in the time that Tesco have been in Thailand Villa have increased their number of stores from 1 to about 7 and some like Thonglor and Pattaya are substantial. I bet Tesco would love to have 7 mores stores operating in the high margin end.
So its hardly a niche market anymore, particularly whenever I go in the Thonglor store I see way more Asians shopping there than Westerners.
Look at all these Luk Kruengs around Udon and Thai kids that belong to Westerners.
My kids only eat Western food, toast and Peanut butter, Cornflakes, Burritos or Roast dinners in the evening.
Its not only 100% Westerners that will require that style of food, for this coming generation there is going to be significant demand.
If Tesco are too dim to anticipate it I expect Mr Villa will.

[Marmite The Dog]

^ Seeing as Tesco are one of the most successful companies in the UK, I will go with their sales plan rather than yours.

:kma:

[RLTrader]

The top dog at Tesco is a Banger and a friend, and I used to constantly hassle him about the lack of western products there. He said that they do introduce new items, but very gradually and only when then can be sure that the Thais would buy them. ......

Like they use to carry canned tomatoes, and a lot of times were sold out, so now they don't carry them. I figured it was to much trouble to re-stock. Now I have to go to Big C or Makro. Didn't see any in Carrefour either, plus many other things, I wish them luck. Disappointed.

[fremmel]

That's exactly the experience I'm had with canned tomatoes except I haven't found them at Big C or Makro. So when I so them at Carrefours I grabbed 3 cans. Maybe everyone else did too. Hopefully they'll restock.

[RLTrader]

That's exactly the experience I'm had with canned tomatoes except I haven't found them at Big C or Makro. So when I so them at Carrefours I grabbed 3 cans. Maybe everyone else did too. Hopefully they'll restock.

Well missed them at Carrefour, but was looking. Makro even has the super big cans, somewhere around the can tuna row, same for Big C. Also a couple baht cheaper at Makro.

[bumper]

Carrying Pie mix a well only place that I know of now. We a enjoying a Cherrie Pie this weekend. Lots of things that were here befoer started disappearing for some reason.

[RALPHCUSENS]

As Truebrit said in an earlier post, the parking is ludicrous, we went there today, and parked in a parking bay, when we retuned after doing the shopping, someone had parked behind me, and left his handbrake on, one and a half hours later, we managed to get out!!!