Amazing effiency in private corporations!!

[HoreTore]

Oh yes, that's irony...

The deal is this: A couple of days ago, two german guys in suits strolled into the gas station where I work. They told the guy who was working there at that time that were from "Shell Motor Oil", and they were there to fix the oil section. He didn't have a clue as to what was going on, so he just told them to do whatever they wanted. What they did, was to switch to shelves of oil boxes... Then they left. He told me it to me when I came to work later, and at first I didn't believe him. But then I later talked to my boss, and he said that those people operate all over europe, "fixing the oil sections"...

So, Shell has(apparently) hired a bunch of guys two drive around europe rearranging the shelves. That's what they do. In suits.

Could anyone PLEASE tell the CEO's how to send pictures via e-mail??

[InsaneApache]

Standard practise in retailing. When I had my shops Levis, if you got to stock them, had to be front, right and centre in the display. They even sent guys out to check that you'd displayed the goods correctly.

I'd imagine that most of the big corporations do similar things.

[Papewaio]

So did they take any oil with them?

[Husar]

They probably also spend money to find out how the goods on the shelves are arranged best to maximize profit. You know, there are devices to track the view of a customer when he walks along a shelf, the device is some sort of hat that has a camera pointed forward and one or two pointed at the consumer's eyes. Combining the video footage you can then find out what the eyes of the customer are focused at, for how long and where they look next. Also has been done with big advertisement posters.

Well, I even found exactly what our professor showed us: Link
It's in german, but you should get the idea.

[Ronin]

talk about taking your business seriously!

now seriously....were they using black suits?

[KukriKhan]

Standard practise in retailing. When I had my shops Levis, if you got to stock them, had to be front, right and centre in the display. They even sent guys out to check that you'd displayed the goods correctly.

I'd imagine that most of the big corporations do similar things.

It's the same here. The big retailers actually charge money for primary placement of product, and the product-makers routinely check, though not usually in pairs of guys in black suits (more likely a 'working themselves through uni' student, or retiree).

[ICantSpellDawg]

if the governement was in charge, those two gentlemen would have supervisor. and that supervisor would have another supervisor.

[Rodion Romanovich]

Oh yes, that's irony...

The deal is this: A couple of days ago, two german guys in suits strolled into the gas station where I work. They told the guy who was working there at that time that were from "Shell Motor Oil", and they were there to fix the oil section. He didn't have a clue as to what was going on, so he just told them to do whatever they wanted. What they did, was to switch to shelves of oil boxes... Then they left. He told me it to me when I came to work later, and at first I didn't believe him. But then I later talked to my boss, and he said that those people operate all over europe, "fixing the oil sections"...

So, Shell has(apparently) hired a bunch of guys two drive around europe rearranging the shelves. That's what they do. In suits.

Could anyone PLEASE tell the CEO's how to send pictures via e-mail??

Priceless!

[drone]

A friend of mine owns a small roadside store. Certain sections in the store are basically owned by the various wholesaler/delivery guys, they are in charge of restocking and changing the displays around, according to whatever "system" their companies come up with. The beer chiller section is the best, they are always changing placement and facing. I think this is pretty standard over here.

[Gregoshi]

It is one of those jobs that their kids will never brag about to their friends.

[Soulforged]

Oh yes, that's irony...

The deal is this: A couple of days ago, two german guys in suits strolled into the gas station where I work. They told the guy who was working there at that time that were from "Shell Motor Oil", and they were there to fix the oil section. He didn't have a clue as to what was going on, so he just told them to do whatever they wanted. What they did, was to switch to shelves of oil boxes... Then they left. He told me it to me when I came to work later, and at first I didn't believe him. But then I later talked to my boss, and he said that those people operate all over europe, "fixing the oil sections"...

So, Shell has(apparently) hired a bunch of guys two drive around europe rearranging the shelves. That's what they do. In suits.

Could anyone PLEASE tell the CEO's how to send pictures via e-mail??

A friend of mine does exactly that, pretty common on all commercial areas.

[InsaneApache]

Perhaps a certain socialist around these parts may like to take a closer look at capitalism.

Just a thought.

[HoreTore]

Perhaps a certain socialist around these parts may like to take a closer look at capitalism.

Just a thought.

Ok... Seriously... They would get the same effect just by simply sending an email to the store boss, with a a picture of how things should look like, and "FIX" written under it in big letters...

They did that at the store I worked at 3-4 years ago, worked like a charm. Though that was a scandinavian company...

But bah. Revolotion, here I come!

[Louis VI the Fat]

A friend of mine owns a small roadside store. Certain sections in the store are basically owned by the various wholesaler/delivery guys, they are in charge of restocking and changing the displays around, according to whatever "system" their companies come up with. The beer chiller section is the best, they are always changing placement and facing. I think this is pretty standard over here.

But bah. Revolotion, here I come!

Tsk, shameless backwards capitalist practices! Must be a drag to live in Norway, the US or Argentina.

We, citizens of the civilised world, are protected against such barbaric practices by the noble institutions of the EU. One of its actually functioning great aspects is the very active antitrust regulation.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

In a ruling that could have implications across the European Union, the European Court of First Instance said on Thursday that the British-Dutch food group Unilever was restricting competition in the fiercely contested market for ice cream bars in Ireland.

Unilever appealed to the court in 1998, when the European Commission outlawed the company's policy of providing freezers to retailers on condition that they not be used to stock rival ice cream.

Small retailers in Ireland who did not have space for two freezer cabinets were stocking their Mars ice creams in the Unilever freezers, a practice Unilever wanted to stop.

By throwing out Unilever's appeal, the court backed the commission's ruling that the exclusivity clauses amounted to an abuse of Unilever's dominant position in the Irish ice cream bar market.

''Taking into account the specific conditions of the market, the popularity of HB ice creams, HB's strength in the market and the specific features of the products, the effect of the agreements as a whole is to restrict competition in the market,'' the court said in a statement.

''HB has abused its dominant position in the market,'' the court concluded.

In other words, join the EU, HoreTore, and you can tell those Shell Men in Black that you are entitled to shove their cans of oil up anywhere you please...

(assuming that your gas station isn't fully owned and operated by Shell itself, mind)

[drone]

We, citizens of the civilised world, are protected against such barbaric practices by the noble institutions of the EU. One of its actually functioning great aspects is the very active antitrust regulation.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

In a ruling that could have implications across the European Union, the European Court of First Instance said on Thursday that the British-Dutch food group Unilever was restricting competition in the fiercely contested market for ice cream bars in Ireland.

Unilever appealed to the court in 1998, when the European Commission outlawed the company's policy of providing freezers to retailers on condition that they not be used to stock rival ice cream.

Small retailers in Ireland who did not have space for two freezer cabinets were stocking their Mars ice creams in the Unilever freezers, a practice Unilever wanted to stop.

By throwing out Unilever's appeal, the court backed the commission's ruling that the exclusivity clauses amounted to an abuse of Unilever's dominant position in the Irish ice cream bar market.

''Taking into account the specific conditions of the market, the popularity of HB ice creams, HB's strength in the market and the specific features of the products, the effect of the agreements as a whole is to restrict competition in the market,'' the court said in a statement.

''HB has abused its dominant position in the market,'' the court concluded.

Sounds to me like a good reason for Unilever to stop giving freezers to retailers. Who wins then?

[HoreTore]

(assuming that your gas station isn't fully owned and operated by Shell itself, mind)

Hah!! It is! Or rather, the Oil section is... And those guys were german, and germany is part of the IU, you know

[English assassin]

Surely you should be saluting the public spirited private corporation that gave jobs to two Germans which involved no more than checking stock on shelves?

Your email-picture solution would (a) result in two germans becoming unemployed and (b) impose a further task on the store staff, without prior agreement from their union representatives.

You are clearly a reactionary free marketeer of the worst sort, and should report at once to your nearest political re-education camp for six months correction with hard labour

[InsaneApache]

[AntiochusIII]

Sounds to me like a good reason for Unilever to stop giving freezers to retailers. Who wins then?

Mars [the ice cream] and the consumers?

[Uesugi Kenshin]

Mars [the ice cream] and the consumers?

Probably. Even if it is kind of tricky for some of the stores to come up with the money for a freezer they should be able to manage it anyway. And then they can stock whatever they want, aka whatever sells!

[Devastatin Dave]

It is one of those jobs that their kids will never brag about to their friends.

Ever seen Tommy Boy? Those guys were probably some execs kids.