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Comment - Outdoor
A rough winter and economic downturn really should mean good times for the outdoor industry, and perhaps the British tourist industry too, which might even see pre-foot and mouth numbers bettered. Who knows? It seems that once one feels they have a handle on the 'credit crunch', there's another slump, apparently unforeseen. Another bank slides down, shares tumble, and to quote the Scottish fella from Dad's Army, "We're all doomed!"
Jobs are being shed in huge numbers as I write this - Corus just announced a few thousand jobs will go, for example - but we're also being told we're a long way from the end of this. Or even the worst of it, depending on which gloom-mongering media you read.
Me, I'm preferring to get outside, do a bit of running, enjoy some walking, and shopping locally wherever possible. Most people I know are doing the same. The long-term effects of this 'crunch' will be, I hope, a lasting legacy of common sense and the end of blind faith in financial institutions and our government. We can exact change on local levels, and we do it every time we shop - or not. I hope your customers are realising that while they might save three quid by buying online, they can't try a pair of boots on over the internet - and most importantly, if they don't shop in their local area, those shops won't be around any more. It would be shameful if the UK ended up in the same sorry state as middle America, where Wal-Mart dominates the retail landscape to the exclusion of almost all others. Big-box retailing and high streets that are identical from one city to the next are no fun; independents are where the fun is. You, the independents, are what makes shopping interesting, not some faceless giant where we'll never meet the manager or ever strike up a relationship.
Hang in there. 2009 will be tough in a lot of ways, but it will be worth it, because we, the customers, are learning.
Jon Bruford, Editor
SGB - Sports and Outdoor
01584 877177
