Metropol

simonipswich1 wrote: Sun 09 Nov, 2025 17.35 Made a purchase in TG Jones, receipt said TG Jones but when the money was debit from my bank account it was WH Smith.

They're still using WHSmith's systems for at least a year after the sale.

My local Post Office Ltd branch was franchised at the end of October, so on my first visit back I noticed they've stopped selling the WHSmith branded stationary for no-name products.

Before the changes, if you topped up electricity or gas, they'd walk to the back office to top up there, now they have the Payzone terminal at the counter so they don't have to leave. Presumably the old terminal was connected to a phone line, while this one appears to work with WiFi.

Meanwhile, ten branches of Post Office in Merseyside, including one that I frequent, are temporarily closed for unexplained "operational reasons"

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/li ... r-32860096

That's one of the issues with the franchise model, if the franchisee can't make it work, they can close and leave local people without a post office for weeks, possibly months while PO Ltd find another business to take it on.

In my area, the Costcutter took on the PO after the original sub PO closed, but they couldn't make it work after a month and was never replaced.

Martin Phillp wrote: Wed 12 Nov, 2025 13.06
simonipswich1 wrote: Sun 09 Nov, 2025 17.35 Made a purchase in TG Jones, receipt said TG Jones but when the money was debit from my bank account it was WH Smith.
They're still using WHSmith's systems for at least a year after the sale.

Hohoho, good luck trying to disentangle themselves. Hmm, I wonder what other private-equity funded retailer had similar vision and fate. The one with slap your back pocket springs to mind...

The TG Jones in Leeds has received a full interior refurbishment with all the branding/signs denoting the various departments etc all in a new style.

Previously the store looked like it wasn’t open. The windows were mostly covered by posters and the lighting was dark with only 1/3rd of all tubes working. Now the windows have been fully cleared and all the lighting is new bright fittings, it feels bright and airy, it’s a massive change

There is also now a Post Office, which also seems to be in a new branding style. There is a small Hobbycraft section as well as a Toys R Us.

In terms of stock, there seems to be some light DIY stock that you wouldn’t have previously seen in a WHSmith.

Andrew wrote: Sat 15 Nov, 2025 17.49 The TG Jones in Leeds has received a full interior refurbishment with all the branding/signs denoting the various departments etc all in a new style.

did they replace the carpet?

Philip wrote: Thu 13 Nov, 2025 14.09 Meanwhile, ten branches of Post Office in Merseyside, including one that I frequent, are temporarily closed for unexplained "operational reasons"

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/li ... r-32860096

A couple of these Post Offices (Formby and Walton Vale) reopened yesterday with supposed plans to reopen the rest during this month.

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/newslive ... r-AA1QBsqR

(Link to the MSN version of the article because it's slightly less user hostile than the actual Echo website)

On a semi related note:

if coffee chains continue to replace static behind-counter above-eyeline menus (that can be browsed pretty much at leisure while in a queue) with "dynamic" TV screens that rotate between three or four pages 20 seconds apart, one of those pages being a fecking advert, like some demented dystopian Teletext carousel, thus forcing folk who are not intimately familiar with every one of the drinks on offer to quickly scan the menu in something not a million miles away from a panic, then they will lose custom from casual, drop in, occasional visitors; especially at this time of year when those of use who aren't slaves to their caffeine-based restoratives may fancy something nutty, minty or orangey as a treat.

Whoever thought they were a good idea needs something cold and sticky dropped down the back of their shirt.

Alexia wrote: Thu 04 Dec, 2025 18.29 On a semi related note:

if coffee chains continue to replace static behind-counter above-eyeline menus (that can be browsed pretty much at leisure while in a queue) with "dynamic" TV screens that rotate between three or four pages 20 seconds apart, one of those pages being a fecking advert, like some demented dystopian Teletext carousel, thus forcing folk who are not intimately familiar with every one of the drinks on offer to quickly scan the menu in something not a million miles away from a panic, then they will lose custom from casual, drop in, occasional visitors; especially at this time of year when those of use who aren't slaves to their caffeine-based restoratives may fancy something nutty, minty or orangey as a treat.

Whoever thought they were a good idea needs something cold and sticky dropped down the back of their shirt.

I wish I could like this more than just once. SURELY it must do more harm than good to sales.

all new Phil wrote: Thu 04 Dec, 2025 18.49
Alexia wrote: Thu 04 Dec, 2025 18.29 On a semi related note:

if coffee chains continue to replace static behind-counter above-eyeline menus (that can be browsed pretty much at leisure while in a queue) with "dynamic" TV screens that rotate between three or four pages 20 seconds apart, one of those pages being a fecking advert, like some demented dystopian Teletext carousel, thus forcing folk who are not intimately familiar with every one of the drinks on offer to quickly scan the menu in something not a million miles away from a panic, then they will lose custom from casual, drop in, occasional visitors; especially at this time of year when those of use who aren't slaves to their caffeine-based restoratives may fancy something nutty, minty or orangey as a treat.

Whoever thought they were a good idea needs something cold and sticky dropped down the back of their shirt.
I wish I could like this more than just once. SURELY it must do more harm than good to sales.

And me too! Got to be one of the most irritating inventions of the current time. Mind you I'm always convinced it's to benefit the coffee chains through confusion. I wonder if any of them have started to do dynamic pricing, a la Ticketmaster?

They also they write the prices on these stupid TV menus in size 8 font so if your eyesight isn't 20/20 you can barely read it, and the slide switches once you've registered what the shocking price is.

Again, I'm convinced it's to just make people not actually register how bloody expensive a Christmas drink is nowadays - when I saw the price for it in Starbucks, six fucking quid for Gingerbread latte (!). They just want people to order and tap blindly.

Metropol

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