Woody's

[Deleted User]

The user and all related content has been deleted.

Ali

I guess if that happens CostCutter wil have to renamed “Squeezed” Who is going to "nick" the sheep ?

krappyrubsnif

Drat. No more 24-7 shopping.

ADGS

There's always whatsit, Sunshine? down on Seven Sisters Road. Not as convenient, but still not as far as all that. Still, this does sound like a bad plan, if true.

graeme

Is it a franchise, or a proper Sainsburys? The Tesco (surely a franchise - it had the same floor riles as the previous shop) that replaced Londis on Seven Sisters is perhaps the grottiest and most poorly stocked 'supermarket' I've had the misfortune to visit.

It's a grumble-thon on here today!

[Deleted User]

The user and all related content has been deleted.

krappyrubsnif

@Misscara - you should have reported them to the council. Nothing could provide more exquisite pleasure than seeing Tesco done under food hygeine laws.

poxy

On Saturday I saw a stray dog take a piss on the fresh produce outside two shops on SGR.

Ian

Please let this be true. Woody's closing and turning into a Sainsbury's would be absolutely brilliant. I hate Woody's. I have had so many bad experiences of terrible, rude service and poor quality produce that I now refuse to shop there. The final straw was an argument when they had "wrongly priced" some cheese, I said that was their problem - they had to sell it to me at that price. They refused to. Eventually, after explaining the law and how they were wrong, I just gave in and paid their price only to find it was basically inedible when I got it home. The staff on the tills are unbearably rude and surly. I wonder sometimes why they work in a service industry. Roll on Sainsbury's if true. I could even give them advice on how not to set up till shifts like Tesco's where there is 100% staff coverage from 10 until 3 and about 60% from 5 til 8...

David

Woody's isn't perfect but replacing all these shops with the big guns will erode the streets character. I say boo.

tosscat

It's 'invitation to treat' Ian, they were right.

tosscat

In the pricing/charging exercise anyway v

Amanda

Being new to this site, I hesitate to join in but I do feel strongly, both about the takeover by big chains and about the potential loss of a more distinctive shop. Where else around here (as opposed to Green Lanes) can you get such an array of yoghurt, yufka or olives? We will end up with absolutely no variety ... The process is probably inevitable but when I think of what Stroud Green Rd was like even 20 years ago, I am quite depressed.

David

I'm with you Amanda. The idea of Woody's being a Sainsbury's kind of kills the top of stroud green road, Woody's probably anchors it while tesco's and to a lesser extent costcutter and miso slowly erode that individuality in the middle before the wigs and meat take back over towards finsbury p.

Ian

@ tosscat - no they are not, the Consumer Protection Act (1987) makes it a criminal offence to give consumers a misleading price indication 'by any means whatever'. The great thing about chain supermarkets is they give you good produce at reasonable prices, that is why they always beat independent retailers. I'm always baffled by the idea that what we want is more shops that are badly run with higher prices. If they were the opposite, we would go there all the time and they wouldn't get taken over.

dorothy

I too agree with Amanda, I'd miss the bread, olives, sticky honey sweets, feta, big bunches of parsley and the big beans in tins. I go to tescos a lot because its closer to me and for things woody's are not so good on. I think they compliment each other. I wonder why they're giving up (if they are at all). What was better 20 years ago though? My favourite restaurant used to be the Magical Busker, just past where the Larrik now is.

bennyfromtheblok

I'm in the pro-Woody's camp, not because I think Woody's is great, I just don't want another Sainsburys there. There is a decent sized Tesco at the end of the road and a huge Sainsburys a 5 minute drive away. Do we really need another "lite" supermarket? I don't think so.
Being half Spanish, I like that you can get all the Mediterranean beans, olives and other bits and bobs from Woody's - they also sell mega cheap wine perfect for Sangria. No doubt it could be a much better shop, but I'd be sad to see it go.

dion

A Sainsbury's that small would have a poor range - nowhere near as large as Tesco. The Sainsbury's local in the petrol station on Hornsey Rise recently closed and turned back into a normal petrol station shop which makes me think that they are not thinking about expanding in the area. @ g-unit - Tesco doesn't do franchises so the Seven Sisters one will be fully owned by Tesco plc. @ misscara - when did you see the mice?

andy

Woody's is bonkers and most of the time I hate it, but I think I'd prefer it to a Sainsbury's that only sells sandwiches and frozen pizza.

mapsa

Ian - I'm pretty sure Tosscat is right. It is only an invitation to treat under English law, they don't have to sell it to you at that price. You could report them to Trading Standards for breaching the CPA, but if it the wrong price was just a mistake, I can't imagine they would be interested.

wideboy

The <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?oe=UTF-8&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=,+United+Kingdom&ei=yW5ES5TACY2B_QbGh-n6CA&ved=0CAoQ8gEwAA&ll=51.562672,-0.109134&spn=0.004422,0.013937&t=h&z=17&layer=c&cbll=51.56222,-0.110376&panoid=pP4GIYIrjX9sOdScBqWCXQ&cbp=12,330.07,,0,5.97">"Local Superstore"</a> on Seven sisters Road (was this what ADGS was referring to?) had a facelift recently and looks remarkably like Woodys now. Maybe they moved-ing.

And ditto krappyrubsnif @Misscara - you should report the mice for everyone's sake!

krappyrubsnif

I'm all for Woodys. I agree the checkout girls mostly seem miserable or downright rude, but my guess is that's a cultural thing and I can put up with it for the sake of the olives, nuts, bread and weird tins of beans. Sainsbury.....bleugh, no thanks, there are plenty of those around.

ADGS

Wideboy: No, though now you mention it there is that too (though did it not change its name again recently? I can't keep up, was certainly Bright something for a while). I meant the one next to Barclays, just opposite the entrance to the bus station, which goes back further and has a wider range of goods than I had long thought, having only ever used it for late night snack requirements.

Fin

Woodys is fine although pales in comparaison with the Turkish supermarkets on Green Lane. They could do a lot better and on balance I'd welcome a Sainsburys. That space was a different Turkish style supermarket barely 5 years ago and before that was a furniture shop so maybe it needs a chain in there to it settle down.

Most importantly however we should campaign for a blue plaque or something as Woodys was the supermatket used in several episodes of Peep Show....

krappyrubsnif

Andy - poll?

Ali

Was Magical Busker mentioned above the Polish Restaurant that used to all pine like a sauna inside as that was the days that Stapleton Hall Tavern (now Larrick), Marlers (now the Nobel) was the centre of action around here. I also didn’t realise that there had been an in between Turkish shop on the site between the Furniture shop and Woodys ! Thought it was the same place with a change of names ? There used to be a big department store on that site on two stories according to a little old lady I once got talking to on SGR a few years back Maybe Busby might be able to comment. Woddys is on the corner of SGR and Hanley Road.

dorothy

@Ali, yes it was the sauna place, Jewish/Polish. I thought it was very sophisticated at the time. I'm glad someone else remembers it. I went into their kitchen once and was shown how to make Kugel (Noodle pudding).

SimonB

I hope SGR doesn't end up like the Crouch End High Street ... M&S, Budgens, Tecos and Waitrose all within 2 minutes walking distance ... (even though the Budgens is really good)

sg_mike

Would be good if we could have a co-op store there instead, I'm struggling to think where the nearest one is around here?

katiejane

Budgens really good. Really? I think it's diabolical.

I'm with Ian on this, bring on Sainsbury's. I hate Woodys.

And there's a co-op at Archway which is really crap.

Sorry to be so negative and all.

Ian

If Woody's was any good there would be people in it, but there never are.