Dundee’s small off-licences have hit back at comments made by an MSP that they are ”immoral” for selling cheap alcohol.
The SNP’s Mark McDonald, who represents North East Scotland, told the Scottish Grocers’ Federation their members were wrong to sell cheap alcohol, branding them ”morally questionable.”
But two of Dundee’s struggling shopkeepers hit back angrily at his claims, questioning his agenda and accusing supermarkets and big business of trying to destroy corner shops.
Faisal Masood of the Liquor Warehouse in Provost Road said: ”How can this man say we are selling stuff too cheaply? We are really struggling, how can we compete when we are surrounded by three supermarkets?”
”We have Tesco on one side, Morrisons down the road and Asda at the other side, plus there is the smaller supermarkets nearby like Lidl as well. They are all cheaper than we are, and our big bottles of cider are price marked, so we can’t cut the prices on them.”
Mr Masood pointed out that while he has to charge £20.99 for a bottle of Jack Daniels, supermarkets can charge up to five pounds less for the same items.
”We get our stocks mainly from the cash and carry and sometimes we are charged more than the supermarkets are selling it for.
”Mostly I make about 30p profit on a bottle of vodka or whisky. And I often go to Tesco and buy stuff there because it is cheaper than the cash and carry.”
Mr Masood’s comments were echoed by Mohammed Saleem of the Party Discount store in Strathmore Avenue, who says shops like his are increasingly struggling to make ends meet.
”At the moment you can buy 12 bottles of Miller for £6 at the supermarket, that’s 50p a bottle, which is 20p cheaper than a can of coke,” he said. ”That’s only one example but I can give you hundreds of other examples.
”Small businesses are getting blamed but it’s not us. Nobody can stop the supermarkets, there’s nothing we can do and comments like Mr McDonald’s are just stupid.
”This man is saying this and they are trying to kill the small business. What he is saying is a nonsense, why don’t they look at what the supermarkets are doing?
”They are trying to get rid of corner shops by charging low prices but when they are gone they will just charge much higher.
”This year is not so busy and we are struggling more than ever before. Everybody is going to the big supermarkets and buying their spirits and beer much cheaper.”
Mr McDonald questioned why some small retailers stocked ”dirt cheap cider” but Scottish Grocers’ Federation chief executive John Drummond answered by saying many of his members were responsible retailers who had taken the decision not to stock that type of alcohol to steer clear of accusations of anti-social behaviour.
The exchange came during evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s finance committee on the SNP Government’s plans to impose a minimum price on alcohol.