An Ormskirk shop has had extra conditions added to its licensing agreement after complaints that fake cigarettes were sold there and children were allowed to buy alcohol.
Ormskirk Superstore, on Aughton Street, was given the additional conditions at a special West Lancashire Borough Council meeting held this week to review its licence.
The shop was also accused of selling tobacco and nicotine to under-age children and selling vaping products to under-age youngsters in school uniform, according to council reports.
Other complaints included that the shop displayed cannabis images and paraphernalia in the window; selling cheap illegal tobacco under the counter and selling cheap cigarettes.
Shop owner Farhad Salehi said ‘accidents’ and mistakes had happened while he was away last year. Other staff had been responsible for the breaches, he said. He thanked councillors for not taking away his licences to sell tobacco, alcohol and vaping products, which were options for the sub-committee.
Councillors were told the incidents raised concerns around issues including protecting child from harm, unpaid tax from the illegal sale of cheaper fake cigarettes, unfair competition with other shops selling legitimate tobacco and cigarettes, and the potential wider links between organised crime and counterfeit cigarettes.
However, the council licensing review was not a criminal court hearing.
Ormskirk Superstore’s permission to sell age-restricted goods, such as cigarettes, rolling tobacco and e-cigarettes, was reviewed after public complaints, test visits and investigations by trading standards officers last year, from the summer to the winter. One complaint came from a parent of a teenager who was sold a vaping product from the shop.
This week, councillors on West Lancashire’s Licensing and Gambling Sub-Committee added four new conditions to the shop’s licensing agreement. These are:
Whenever licensable activities are taking place, at least one member of staff present within the premises must hold a personal licence.
All staff, including the ‘designated premises supervisor’, must undertake Challenge 25 refresher training at least every six months, and the details of this must be recorded in a training manual and disclosed to any authority on request.
All people including the designated premises supervisor involved in the sale of licensable products must undertake the Lancashire County Council Check 25 online training while available.
A notice must be displayed in the shop providing details of all people authorised to sell alcohol including their name, address and up-to-date contact telephone number.
A report to councillors stated a Lancashire County Council trading standards officer believed the information presented against the Aughton Road shop was ‘clear evidence that the prevention of crime and disorder and the protection of children from harm in licensing objectives have been disregarded’.
The report added: “Notwithstanding any further information being provided, the county’s trading standards service respectfully requests that the committee considers whether revocation of the premises licence would be an appropriate finding in the circumstances.”
Lancashire Police were also consulted in the shop’s review. They said they had not received any specific complaints about the Aughton Road shop. However they supported the work of trading standards officers.
Last year, trading standards officers sent 14 and 15-year-old volunteers to buy age-restricted products on two occasions and twice the sales were carried out. The Ormskirk shop and its licence holder, Farhad Salehi, had failed to observe the licensing objective of protecting children from harm, it was said.
Trading standards has received a number of complaints about under-age sales and the supply of illicit tobacco . A packet of counterfeit Mayfair cigarettes was bought by a 15-year-old test buyer on August 9, 2021, and 78 illicit tobacco products were seized by trading standards on the same day.
Despite that enforcement visit, trading standards officers continued to receive complaints. A test purchase of e-cigarettes was attempted on December 22, 2021 and a 14-year-old test purchaser was sold two ‘Geek Bars’ with nicotine.
Products from the shop were tested and confirmed as counterfeit by legitimate tobacco firm representatives. The cigarettes were also not being sold in plain packaging and did not have the required health message.
Under the licensing arrangement, the shop’s owner, Farhad Salehi, is also the designated premises supervisor. Staff working in the shop on different occassions last year were named as Ali Abdullah, Dane Hama and Hama Bakr, a council report stated.
Speaking after this week’s licensing meeting to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Mr Salehi, aged 32, said: “These accidents happened while I was out of the country last year, visiting my elderly mother in Kurdistan. She is unwell and has lost both her legs. When I came back to England and found out what had happened, I sacked all the staff.”
He added: “I will be at the shop all the time now. I know these were serious incidents. I did not know how serious the problems were at the time. There will be no accidents or mistakes whatsoever from now.”
Regarding counterfeit cigarettes, Mr Salehi said: “One of my staff bought them and sold them behind my back. I don’t know where they were from. That was the main reason I sacked the staff.”
Looking ahead, he said: “I will be getting more information from the council about licensing, personal licensing and more training. They will be sending me all the instructions. I’ll keep my eyes on the shop and take full responsibility.”
He added: “I want to thank everyone at the licensing meeting for letting me continue running the shop. I have spent 17 years building the business. I don’t want to risk that. I am really grateful. ”
Previously, Cllr Gareth Dowling, who is West Lancashire Borough Council’s cabinet member for communities and community safety, supported the licensing review and said he had received complaints about the shop. It had been a ‘welcome addition’ to the town centre but now the council had to act, he said in a report to this week’s meeting.
The alcohol license of Liverpool convenience store, which had become the “go to” location for illicit sales, has been revoked after a 13-year-old girl had to be taken to hospital after getting drunk on vodka she had purchased unchallenged from the store.
According to local media reports, members of Liverpool Council’s licensing and gambling sub-committee have taken a dim view of the levels of “wholesale breaches and criminal offences” at Old Swan Express on Prescot Road, stripping owner Sinnathamby Arumugasamy of his licence, despite him only gaining permission to trade at the former angling store in February of this year.
Most recently last month, two teenagers managed to buy vodka from the store unchallenged, which led to one of the girls requiring medical attention after consuming the alcohol.
The incident was reported to Merseyside Police, who were represented by PC Nicola Ireland at the hearing. She told the committee how the force had requested CCTV footage to establish the circumstances of the incident but none was provided owing to an “issue” with the shop’s system.
PC Ireland said as a result, officers were not able to pursue a prosecution into the “very, very serious offence” and it had hindered the investigation.
Claire Jones, from the council’s trading standards team told the committee, said there had been “ongoing issues” with the business and the authority had sought to secure the maximum closure order of three months from the courts as a result. She said on multiple occasions, anonymous tip-offs had been received regarding the sale of counterfeit and loose cigarettes as well as illicit vapes.
In July, a 16-year-old volunteer was able to purchase an illicit vape for £12 without being challenged on their age or for identification during a test visit. On that occasion, the sole individual working said they were “just covering” for the owner and on further inspection, a list of available illicit vapes was found in a bin.
A hidden compartment under the counter was also identified containing illegal products. Jones said shops were keeping small quantities on site more often to avoid large seizures when found.
On a separate visit, officers also uncovered a wine bottle with “bits floating in it,” Jones said. Arumugasamy said he had bought this from a man with a van, apologised and said it wouldn’t happen again.
Despite this plea, trading standards officials were able to buy single cans of super strength cider on different occasions, a breach of the licensing conditions.
Arumugasamy told the committee how he was “really very, very sorry” for what had happened and acknowledged the products he sold were illegal. He claimed he had been pressured by people to sell them the products and had been threatened by youngsters in his shop. PC Ireland rejected this claim, saying the force had not been notified of such incidents.
The committee heard how he had previously been a chef for 17 years and was his first shop, having only been granted his licence in February this year. Delivering the committee’s decision that it would revoke Arumugasamy’s licence, Cllr Christine Banks, committee chair, said, “The committee is in no doubt to revoke this licence due to the wholesale breaches and criminal offences committed.
“The committee has no confidence the licence holder will be able to run this premises in a lawful manner in future.”
October’s footfall figures declined marginally as compared to last year, shows latest industry data, highlighting concerns for a policy environment that supports growth and investment.
According to data by British Retail Consortium (BRC), total UK footfall decreased by 1.1 per cent in October (YoY), down from +3.3 per cent in September. High Street footfall decreased by 3.6 per cent in October (YoY), down from +0.9 per cent in September.
Retail Park footfall increased by 4.8 per cent in October (YoY), down from +7.3 per cent in September. Shopping Centre footfall decreased by 1.6 per cent in October (YoY), down from +2.3 per cent in September.
Meanwhile, footfall increased year-on-year in three of the devolved nations, with Northern Ireland rising by 1.3 per cent, Scotland by 0.8 per cent, and Wales by 0.4 per cent, while England experienced a decline of 1.5 per cent.
Commenting on the figures, Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, said, "October’s footfall figures showed a marginal decline compared to last year, primarily due to half-term moving out of the comparison. Despite the decline, retail parks continued to attract shoppers, as they saw positive footfall growth for the third consecutive month. Across England, the northern towns performed best, with Leeds and Liverpool seeing positive footfall last month.
"Retailers have seen footfall consistently fall since the pandemic. Thriving high streets and town centres are not only good for local economies but also form a key part of the social fabric of communities up and down the country. With 6,000 stores closing in the past five years, retailers now need a policy environment that supports growth and investment.”
Andy Sumpter, Retail Consultant EMEA for Sensormatic, commented, "After the positive footfall performance we saw in September, October’s footfall dropped back into negative figures compared to the year before. While this will be disappointing for many retailers, who may have hoped the positive figures in September would spell the start of a more consistent uptick in store traffic, it perhaps shouldn’t come as a surprise.
"We expect to see a bumpy recovery as a myriad of market conditions - from the cost of living to shaky consumer confidence around the Budget – continue to make footfall performance volatile. Retailers now need to look ahead and focus their efforts on the rest of the Golden Quarter, delivering compelling reasons to visit in order to drive ambient footfall and sales during the key Christmas trading period.”
Children at Ashton Primary School in Preston got into the spirit of Halloween with some spooktacular support from SPAR.
Thirty children in Reception class took part in a cookery session to concoct a healthy pumpkin and carrot soup with ingredients supplied by James Hall & Co. Ltd. SPAR recipe cards were also provided to children to take home alongside additional pumpkins, carrots, and onions, enabling them to recreate their bubbling broth together with their parents.
The cookery sessions were set up to promote healthier eating options and came to fruition with support from Preston City Council and the University of Central Lancashire’s Dietetics department. As part of the Halloween event, children in Reception were also joined by pupils from Years 1 and 2 to allow their imaginations to run wild by decorating a pumpkin in a carving competition.
Reception winner was Almirah with her clever upside-down bat design, while Wiktor won the Year 1 competition with his ‘Happy Halloween’ pumpkin.
Ella-Rose was named the winner of Year 2 competition with her larger ghost pumpkin eating a smaller orange pumpkin, with the design also illuminating through the inclusion of tea lights.
Bryony Readey, Reception teacher and Assistant Headteacher at Ashton Primary School, said: “We are so grateful to SPAR for supplying us with ingredients to promote our healthy eating agenda within school and the children had so much fun in the cookery session.
“We know that they also enjoyed some valuable parent and child time in creating their pumpkins for the competition, and we hope they will replicate that with the recipe cards and ingredients they are taking home.”
Aishah Ibrahim, Junior Fresh Trading Manager at James Hall & Co. Ltd, said: “This has been a fantastic piece of partnership work supporting Ashton Primary School. We were delighted to hear the children loved the cookery sessions and we were very impressed with the creativity that had gone into the pumpkin carving competition.
“It isn’t often in my role we get to support the community like our retail teams at SPAR stores do every day, but this project has enabled that, and we look forward to working with Ashton Primary School on other initiatives this academic year.”
James Hall & Co. Ltd is a fifth-generation family business which serves a network of independent SPAR retailers and company-owned SPAR stores across Northern England six days a week from its base at Bowland View in Preston.
Kepak Group has announced the acquisition of Summit Foods, a UK-based company specialising in chilled and frozen convenience foods. With annual revenues of £24 million and a team of 200 employees, Summit Foods is an established player in the UK’s convenience food sector. The acquisition, is part of Kepak’s strategic plan to further grow its food business organically and via acquisition.
“We are pleased to welcome Summit Foods to the Kepak Group," said Brian Farrell, CEO of Kepak Foods. "This acquisition aligns with our growth strategy, developing our presence in the UK convenience and out-of-home food channels. Summit's portfolio of fresher for longer sandwiches, chilled and frozen meals & snacks complements our existing micro snacking offerings and allows us to deepen our presence across these markets”.
Summit Foods will continue to operate from its current base in Preston, with no immediate changes to its operations, branding, or customer offerings. The leadership team from Summit will remain in place for a six-month transition period to facilitate a smooth transition.
Kepak plans to leverage its existing distribution network and market expertise to support future growth for Summit Foods. This acquisition strengthens Kepak’s position in the UK’s growing Food To Go and micro-snacking market, valued at £6.8 billion.
Kepak remains focused on delivering business as usual for Summit’s customers and employees, the acquisition provides opportunities for long-term growth. For the immediate future, the two companies will work closely to align operations and explore potential synergies, particularly in the areas of product development and distribution.
Managing Director of Mangrove Global and outspoken industry commentator, Nick Gillett, has provided his reaction to the Labour Government’s Autumn Budget. With doom and gloom forecast by the media well in advance of the Budget’s publication – the new fiscal regime was never expected to be "good for business". That said, there will be many in the hospitality and spirits industries wondering exactly how they’ll manage when the bulk of changes take effect in April next year. Nick says it’s an age-old tale of the government introducing more costs and offering no assistance:
“Prior to the Budget being announced, I said the best we could hope for as an industry was to be left well alone. But sadly, that was a pipe dream.
“And whilst the unprofessional trailing of details hinted it was going to be a lot worse than it was – it’s still nothing to shout about. A vast increase in employment costs, rises to alcohol duty for spirits, and a lessening of the rates relief currently available to the hospitality sector, means that more businesses are bound go under.
“Since Covid and Brexit, many companies have never fully recovered, continuing to operate on the slightest of margins – and these added costs and lessening of support will be the final nail in the coffin for many.”
Since Covid, the Hospitality, Retail, and Leisure sectors have received significant business rates relief to help bolster the struggling sector – in the last few years the relief has remained at 75 per cent. This was hard fought for by industry lobbyists such as UKHospitality, in an attempt to protect businesses and employees alike. In the last Autumn Statement the Conservative Government extended the relief by another year, and still 50 venue closures a month were reported in the first six months of 2024. The latest Budget marks the end of the current relief, with a reduction to 40 per cent confirmed for April 2025.
He added: “To fully understand how damaging this is for hospitality, you need to go way back. The sector was first struck by Covid and the lockdowns. It was hit by increasing costs in alcohol, thanks to increased duty and bureaucracy. Cost of living continues to reduce disposable income and custom. And Brexit has forced out swathes of the workforce that was the lifeblood of the industry.
“Now, the Government continues to pile on costs – and we’ll need to wait and see if any of this actually increases the public’s spending power by putting more money in their pockets. One thing that is for sure – the only way businesses will survive is by increasing prices. And that will have an added effect on inflation.”
The Autumn Budget also detailed a mixed bag of changes that will affect spirits producers - including alcohol duty. Whilst duty on alcoholic drinks served on "draught" will reduce by 1.7 per cent, wine, spirits, bottled beers, and cider will see duty rise by retail price inflation. Both the lower and higher rates of the soft drink levy will also increase to £1.94 and £2.59 per ten litres respectively. Not only will this push up the price of tipple for great British drinkers, but it will also stifle growth.
“Previous, recent rises in alcohol duty have shown that the rise is passed onto consumers, leading to fewer sales, and less money raised for the treasury. So, to confirm another rise seems illogical," Nick continued.
“But let’s get this straight. The hospitality and spirits industries are bursting with talented, creative, and entrepreneurial people. Where these businesses thrive, local economies succeed.
“As much as the Government’s Budget hasn’t gifted us any giveaways, I have no doubt the industry will pull together, weather the storm, and come out the other side. All off the back of the exceptional people behind it.
“And when that happens – the UK economy will once again reap the benefits our success, as it always does.”