Skip to content
Search
AI Powered
Latest Stories

Chancellor urged to give much-needed boost to convenience stores

Chancellor urged to give much-needed boost to convenience stores
Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images
Getty Images

Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has called on chancellor Jeremy Hunt to give convenience store retailers the incentives necessary to invest in the safety, security and long term future of their businesses.

In its submission to the Autumn Statement, taking place on Nov 22, ACS has called on the Chancellor to support retailers with stability on business rates, pragmatism on future wage increases, and a commitment to tackling crime in communities across the UK.


Key measures recommended by ACS in the submission include:

  1. Freeze the business rates multiplier to help businesses deal with the impact of inflation
  2. Extend the 75 per cent retail and hospitality relief for another year
  3. Introduce an mechanism to pause uplifts in National Living Wage if rates have a detrimental impact on employment opportunities and investment
  4. Deliver on the Khan Review recommendations for a £15m boost to enforcement against the illicit tobacco and vaping market
  5. Introduce tax incentives to help businesses invest in tackling crime and anti-social behaviour

ACS chief executive James Lowman said: “Convenience store retailers have faced incredible challenges over the last year, dealing with enormous energy bills, inflationary pressures in all areas of their businesses, and the all too regular threat of theft and other serious crime.

"We are calling on the Chancellor to give this essential sector a much-needed boost, to help them invest more on crime prevention and detection measures, to invest in energy efficient refrigeration and lighting to reduce their costs in the long term, and to introduce more EV charging options for customers. By supporting the convenience sector, the Chancellor will make it clear that this Government supports local jobs, local services and local investment.”

Figures from the 2023 Local Shop Report show that over the last 12 months, convenience stores invested over £646m in their businesses in areas like refrigeration, technology, CCTV, wider service provision and a more diverse range of products.

The full submission to the Autumn Statement is available here.

More for you

Bira engages with Treasury on Budget fallout, business rate reform
(Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
Getty Images

Bira engages with Treasury on Budget fallout, business rate reform

Independent retailers association Bira has held a meeting with members of the Treasury team to discuss concerns following its robust response to the Government’s recent Budget announcement.

The Budget, labelled by Bira as "devastating" for independent retailers, was met with widespread indignation from Bira members.

Keep ReadingShow less
East of England Co-op achieves 70 per cent productivity boost with Electronic Shelf Labels

East of England Co-op achieves 70 per cent productivity boost with Electronic Shelf Labels

East of England Co-op said it has improved labour productivity whilst improving customer service delivery in-store with an Electronic Shelf Label (ESL) solution from Pricer, the leading in-store automation and communication solutions provider.

Established in 1861, East of England Co-op is now the largest independent retailer operating in the East of England. In addition to the 120 food stores it operates in the region, the regional cooperative also offers customers specialist services, such as funerals, security, travel agents and petrol filling stations across Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire.

Keep ReadingShow less
PayPoint

PayPoint delivers strong half-year results; retail network crosses 30,000 sites

PayPoint Plc has on Thursday has announced a robust financial performance for the half year ending 30 September, making continued progress towards achieving an underlying EBITDA of £100 million by the end of FY26.

The company’s UK retail network increased to 30,151 sites during the period, from 29,149 at the end of the previous fiscal year. 70 per cent of these are independent retailers, and the rest in multiple retail groups.

Keep ReadingShow less
Johnson & Johnson office

Johnson & Johnson office in Irvine, California

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images

Johnson & Johnson risks UK lawsuit over talc cancer claim

UK claimants announced Wednesday legal action against US pharmaceutical and cosmetics giant Johnson & Johnson, alleging that women diagnosed with cancers were exposed to asbestos in the company's talcum powder.

J&J risks UK court action for the first time over the allegations, having faced a series of similar lawsuits in North America.

Keep ReadingShow less
Glebe Farm Foods: 'best-in-class' for Food Safety Standards

Glebe Farm Foods: 'best-in-class' for Food Safety Standards

Glebe Farm Foods has announced that its site has been awarded AA+ grade following the recent unannounced audit against the BRCGS V9 standard.

The BRCGS Global Food Safety Standard is a globally recognised certification program designed to ensure the safety, quality, legality and authenticity of food products. This was the first unannounced audit for the site and included all the production facilities; de-hulling, flaking and flour, oat drink manufacturing and Tetrapak filling, and new to the scope was the manufacturing and packing of Granola.

Keep ReadingShow less