Cet article paru dans le Daily Telegraph le 3 juillet 2010 évoque les difficultés rencontrées par la chaîne de magasins Marks and Spencer. A cette date, les actions de Marks and Spencer avaient chuté de 25%, la conséquence directe d’une forte diminution des ventes au cours des treize semaines précédentes. Le PDG de l’entreprise expliquait que cette situation était due aux difficultés économiques ressenties par les consommateurs contraints de se serrer la ceinture, la guerre des prix menée par les concurrents ne faisant qu’exacerber le problème. Le malheur des uns faisant le bonheur des autres les magasins discounts connaissaient, eux, une croissance exponentielle. Une fraction non négligeable des plus fidèles clients de Marks and Spencer avait déjà changé de fournisseur en leur faveur. Le cas de Marks and Spencer était loin d’être unique et les faillites de détaillants s’accéléraient. Il fallait donc pour les grands distributeurs trouver les solutions commerciales adaptées pour faire revenir la clientèle. 157 mots A. I usually shop at supermarkets because it is very convenient: you can find everything under one roof and thus save a lot of time. Moreover big supermarket groups often offer bargain prices. The problem is that they are often out of town and crowded and noisy places. I also often shop at discounters where prices are better. For a last minute item small shops around the corner are very good, but there are not many left these days. However for some goods like CDs or books I usually turn to the internet where I can find everything I want at very competitive prices. Moreover these virtual shops are open around the clock, seven days a week, so they’re very convenient. 120 mots B. As a student, my purchasing power is rather low as I do not earn any money. As a result, I have to live on a tight budget and watch my spending. This is why I stick to the bare necessities, like food. I want to make both ends meet and every purchase must be well thought of. I have got a credit card but I am careful because I do not want to be in the red at the end of the month. As a consequence, I avoid branded goods which cost always more. I also try to make the best of promotions and the big sales, especially to buy my clothes. This way I can manage with a small amount of money and still save up for the holidays!

As you can see I am definitely not a shopaholic. 140 mots