Hypothetically speaking...

[Mowjo]

Well! as the original remark was on my post I'd better comment! it wouldn't work! anyone that has been on the Broads for a few years will remember most of the yards did Petrol and there were little shops dotted everywhere, not always the cheapest but you paid for the convenience and the fact that they were seasonal, now you only have a few places like Roys and Lathams and the odd shop here and there, Petrol is only sold in a couple of places, mainly because most boats are diesel now, the profit on petrol for the yards just isn't worth it since the H&S got involved, no doub't the insurance would sky rocket on yards selling petrol, so if it was viable I think all the little shops and yards selling petrol would still be doing it, some of you may remember years ago the floating shop that used to cruise the Broads, at Wayford we had Pongo the mobile pump out man, all gone, now if you really want a little venture and could afford the insurance, here's an Idea! wherever I go on the Broads I always manage to find McD rubbish, how about a floating Burger boat? selling burgers, bacon sarnies all the usual stuff like teas and coffee, a money maker if I ever saw one, and yes I did actually think about it myself years ago, but after owning a Café I didn't want to go there, now another Idea if your a funeral director, how about last cruise funeral trips, you need a nice boat with the coffin rack on it, and you take the deceased and the family and friends on a last Broads trip, could catch on, and as I'm not allowed my Viking funeral I'd go for it,,

Frank,,,

[Siddy]

The Asda at yarmouth great option you could even pre order click and collect on the mooring. With all these things and a thing that bugs me is it would have to be a short stay moorings. Last week 4 times we couldn't get near Ransworth to get to there shop.

[LondonRascal]

I think there is and will always be a division of opinion as to this sort of thing.

 

Yes you can get staples the stores at Ludham Bridge is an example, there are a couple of places in Horning, then of course at Ranworth staithe and the small shop by the bridge at Acle. Then south you've got the likes of the Post Office at Reedham which sells a few bits or the little shop up the hill at Reedham or down at Stokesby to name but a few.  Yes they are run by locals and yes their welcome is warm but and I  don't really want to say this, but I have to - they are expensive and their choice is limited their ambience dated.

 

It really feels in the main they are set up to serve the passing boat trade rather than the actual local residents and because of that they can't buy in too much stock or it will simply not be bought, and because they are small they can't offer the same completive pricing you'd find in a larger store.

 

I'd not want to remove these important places from the map, but I would like there to be somewhere not too small, neither too large - modern with good a choice at a fair price that would not solely get its trade from passing boat traffic but from the residents of the local village.

 

See below as an example:

 

 

You can't tell me that if there was somewhere like that which offered most of what you needed at a good price in say Horning, you'd get the car drive to the likes of Roy's in Wroxham - which is basically a cross brand with Nisa (also always more expensive I might add than Tesco/Asda) when you could get the things you would need most of the time a walk down the road?

 

Now if you added to that a place to buy fuel - you would have both river and vehicular trade - and since you would be providing red diesel for the boats, you can also sell it at the road and get the local agricultural trade come to you too.

 

I don't think that if such a place existed where you could pop over in your boat, fill up with fuel, have a pump out and a chap change the oil and filter for the engine while you waited you'd suddenly see smaller boatyards go out of business - you'd probably have the local hire yard bosses turn up complaining too many of their customers were stopping off filling up with the cheaper fuel you provide though.  

 

It could be a hub of the community locally and for some distance - not a menace like a large supermarket selling goodness knows what, including TV's, Microwaves and clothes, it would be surely beneficial to many a person than cause problems for other businesses.  It could and only would work if the majority of trade came from people in the local area, anything that was modelled on boating traffic and seasonally fluctuations is likely to not succeed.

 

Finally before I bore the forum to death...Moorings and their provison:

 

I've mentioned this in the past but not here, The Broads Authority has many a 24hr mooring but there is often complaints about boats over staying or the moorings being full - if you were to try and charge people to moor how would that work?  Who would want to pay just to stop overnight and not have anything in return?

 

Let's take the moorings at St. Benet's as an example of an automated mooring fee collection system which could also manage overstaying boats with automatic penalties being issued.

 

Imagine if there was water points, electric hook up, and refuse collection services there - and you had to pay to moor there.  Let's say £3.00 to £5.00 for 24hrs.

 

Your toll sticker would contain and RF chip and this would work be it a hire boat or private boat.  When you moored up the mooring posts would have readers in that registered your boat, the time it arrived and the meter (so to speak) would start ticking.

 

You could use the electric, get rid of your rubbish and top up your tanks with water and no money would be physically needed at the time - and then you would depart the following day, or maybe just after a couple of hours like you would usually with no body having to come round to collect any fees.

 

For the hirer, upon return to the boat yard the crew who fill up the fuel tanks would have one more job - scan the toll sticker with a reader - this would mean when the hirers went to the office to deal with any refund of fuel deposit, the Broads Authority database (linked over a secure internet connection) would show the boatyard that this boat had stopped off overnight at one of the charged for moorings and an amount be deducted either from the deposit the hirer had paid, or paid for there and then by cash or card.

 

Private boaters could choose to log into their account and pay off their mooring fees each month, or wait until their tolls were renewed and on top of the annual toll would be a statement of where they had moored at charged for moorings and the associated costs of so doing throughout the year add on to the overall toll fee.

 

It would only apply to moorings administered by the Broads Authority, and only moorings where provision of water, refuse collection and electric were provided (in short the mooring fee paid for the provision of services and the current toll income - as already does - would pay for the moorings upkeep).

 

It would help manage moorings because people who overstayed would be fined an amount (say £20.00).  I think that is fair - you pay to moor and you get something for this even if you did not have or need electric, it is handy to have the water there and a place to get rid of your rubbish - every boat would help pay for the collection and a barge once a week say, would go between moorings collecting the rubbish so no more issues with the county council as to who will pay.

 

 

Ok now i promise to keep quite and not write essays here

[Mowjo]

Yup that would work! if you wanted to kill the Broads,  we could even have traffic lights and floating roundabouts, why not mooring meters as well?

then I could get rid of all my foreign coins I have left over, if I have to pay more I want more!

 

 

Frank,,,,

[BroadScot]

Was the TV ....THAT AWFUL tonight Robin  Thats got War and Peace under serious threat. A very interesting essay though, just the same.

 

Personally I like the wee shops, they were here before I ever came to the Broads, and hopefully those that are open, shall still survive. Folks pay enough tolls and fees as it is. Why add to it?

 

I am with Frank on this, I too believe it would kill the Broads as I have known it for over 40 years.

 

Iain.

[Matt]

I am with Frank on this, I too believe it would kill the Broads as I have known it for over 40 years.

Iain.

But slowly and slowly the shops and pubs are slowly being dissolved away now. Of course there will be a time when those that remain will survive but when will that be?

We pretty much do all out food shopping before we arrive at the boat as it is just far easier and cheaper.

[JimG]

The average holiday maker visits for what? One week? If you want cheap food etc then stock up before you come. Or visit the supermarkets at either Norwich, Gt. Yarmouth, Wroxham, Stalham etc before you arrive at the boatyard. I don't think The Broads needs commercialisation (is that even a word).

[ranworthbreeze]

These days we drop our stuff off at the boat in Brundall so we have room in the car to get the shopping from Roys, it only takes a little over 20 minutes on the back roads to Wroxham.

 

We then tend to top up the supplies from the local shops during our visit with bread, milk etc as we need it.

 

Spread your money around the Broads, these local shops & pubs need visitors cash to survive.

 

Regards

Alan 

[Hockham Admiral]

"Use it or lose it"

[MauriceMynah]

I've just re-read Robins original post and to be honest the idea was fairly sound as long as other things became involved. It was NOT suggesting a riverside supermarket but a riverside general store for the essentials, plus fuel and water.

 

Yes this is a seasonal business but there are other seasonal businesses it could engage in as well. Fireworks, (I like the idea of a petrol depot doing fireworks too) Christmas things, Coal and Easter bunnies. Whatever it takes to turn a profit outside the main season.

 

Where it does fall down is that the basis of the idea already exists yet doesn't happen. If Jason will forgive me I shall use Ludham Bridge as an example.

 

Here we have a pretty central position on the northern rivers. It has a shop, water, pumpout and full highly recommended boatyard facilities. It sells neither diesel nor petrol. Why might this be?

 

In my far from humble opinion, it would have to be the costs involved in installing the required facilities to the standard required by the relevant authorities.

Jason can't just have a stack of petrol filled jerry cans tucked round the back, for a kick off, Griff would have to give up smoking whenever Jason held a party! It aint goin' to happen!!!

 

No, the costs of providing this service must be prohibitive, otherwise Jason would be providing it, as would one or two others!

[Maxwellian]

Cat, Pigeons, bag. Lovely discussion Robin and one that was guaranteed to polarise members. Now how do we get the cat out from amongst the pigeons and back into the bag.

I love the idea of cheap fuel and food. But as has been said before if you plan well you can get the cheap food, either take it on board with you or plan your trip so that you are within walking distance of one of the big four or smaller but even cheaper two. I come down on the side of better as it is. Peaceful, tranquil and not too commercial. As for fuel if you shop around you can get a good price.

No not for me. Getting old.....leave it as it is.

[Guest]

On the subject of the Tapas bar........It may well be moving to Acle.....possibly the Hermitage.

[BroadScot]

I do see the shopping side for Robin, as he does transport himself by Train to his disignated boatyard. So, yes it would work for him I guess. Me, I now stock up at Sainsbury's new store in Kings Lynn on the saturday morning, after my overnight stay in the Premier Inn close by. But, like Alan use the small stores to top up as required.

 

Roys after all, is a village store

 

Iain.

[Labrador]

Jonzo is quite correct, Roy's is very keenly priced. The good thing about their meat is that you can buy a sensible quantity for one or two people, most of the big supermarkets only seems to offer packs/portions to feed the 5,000. Their wine is very keenly priced, try to buy a, say, Chilean Merlot for half price, £5.50 instead of £11.00 in one of the big supermarkets.

[Mowjo]

Maurice! you hit it on the head with cost, Jason did used to do diesel, but the Tank needed replacing, from what he said the cost of replacing the tank and the little profit he made from diesel meant he would probably never recover the cost, I never take Robin seriously but I like the Broads just the way they are,,,,

 

Frank,,,, 

[MauriceMynah]

Robin, I don't know who has the problem here, you, me or Frank.

He doesn't take you seriously, but he does me!!!

Be afraid, be very afraid!!!!!!!

[Gracie]

I would rather shop in Roy's than Asda or Tesco any day of the week and dare I say Lathams, Iv'e heard it called chavvy (whatever that mean's) but I love going in there. Who can complain about half price wine lol

Grace

[Matt]

I would rather shop where it's the cheapest with four mouths to feed!

I know the problem that Brooms have with petrol is that they have a 2300 litre tank but the minimum order quantity is 2000 litres.

[Mowjo]

Gracie! we were at Waterside looking at boats last week and there were four coaches in the carpark and they were all in Lathams, I know they used to do them years ago when Lathams was really good, but now it's like a gloryfied £1 shop the quality of the stuff there has really gone down hill, having said that when every i go in there I always come out with something I don't really need,

 

 

Frank,,,

[quo vadis]

Been there done that many times, but will probably do it again, I also have a fond memory of Roys maybe Trevor, Denzil Fallout would care to explain.

[diesel falcon]

NO!! the very thought makes me twinge

[quo vadis]

Trevor "twinge" or "cringe"

[Gracie]

Fantastic post Malteser, the BOGOF offers are such a con, if you have a good look when doing your weekly/monthly shop the amount of other products that have gone up in price to cover the offers is a crime. A basic bathroom cleaner had gone up from a £1.00 up to £1.20 in the space of a week, that's just one example but it's on a hell of a lot of products. So you're not actually getting anything free it makes my blood boil.

 

Do they honestly think that we are so stupid to think that they are doing us a favour and giving us something for free, I think not

 

Grace

[BroadScot]

That's why we use Aldis now Grace for may basic items, they keep going down in price, not up. Both Aldis and Lidls have deffo entered the market now IMHO.

 

What gets me is the three for £10.00 not much use if only wanting one!

 

Iain

[Mowjo]

Maurice! don't panic! it may be your turn in another post, coming from someone that once said to an elderly relation at a funeral "Is it worth taking you home" can you honestly see me taking anything seriously????

 

Now back on topic sort of, just to prove I can do it,,,,

 

Iain! we switched to Aldi after I wanted some veg and couldn't be bothered to go to our local Tesco or Asda,  not only was it cheaper it actually tasted ten times better, so then I tried their meat, same thing the Pork tasted like Pork, the Lamb tasted like Lamb, and their Chickens are something else, the only downside to both is limited stock so we still use Asda/Tesco's for some bits, but I think we now do at least 70% of our shopping in Aldi/Lidl, I even buy a lot of tools from Lidl now, I've also noticed that Tesco and Asda seems to be mainly selling their own products now and most of the ones I've tried arn't that good, now if they built an  Aldi on the Broads I give Robin my vote,

 

 

Frank,,,,