Tesco to adapt supermarket for pensioners

Aug 28 2008 by Chris Robinson, The Journal

THE country’s first pensioner-friendly supermarket is planned for Newcastle. If given the go-ahead, the store would feature extra wide aisles, anti-slip flooring and shopping trolleys with magnifying glasses, locking wheels and built-in chairs to rest tired feet.

And representatives from the North East’s elderly community have travelled to Berlin to see how a pioneering German supermarket is setting the standards for silver shoppers.

Scientists from Newcastle University have joined the fact-finding mission to look at ways in which to develop a new Tesco supermarket, which is earmarked to be built at the multi-million pound Institute for Aging and Health.

The centre, which has already begun world-class research into Alzheimer’s Disease, is to be built on the site of Newcastle General Hospital, which will be demolished to make way for the £30m development.

It is hoped the visit will be the first step towards research looking at the ways in which older people shop and what they buy, giving researchers at the University a better understanding of the relationships between nutrition and shopping behaviour and how more effectively to promote a healthy diet.

Leading the visit, Professor Jim Edwardson said: “This will be an exciting opportunity to find out how supermarket shopping can be improved, not just for older people but for many others who could benefit.

“Retailers need to address the needs of an aging population and the opportunities to support healthy lifestyles and independence, not just in relation to nutrition but across a wide range of other services the supermarkets increasingly provide.”

Bob Weiner, secretary of Newcastle’s Elders Council and a member of the delegation who will relay back their findings, said much more needed to be done before shopping could be described as “age-friendly”.

The Kaiser supermarket in Friedrichshain, near Berlin, was the first of its kind when it opened two years ago.

It also features generous checkout counters, alarm-buttons for one-on-one customer service and a pensioner-friendly senior corner with a relaxation area and massage chairs.

Bosses there have reported that more than 60% of customers are over 50s and that sales increased by 25% above forecasted figures.

Tesco have submitted a planning application to Newcastle City Council for the 60,000sq ft store, which is expected to be determined on October 24.

Page 2: Shoppers welcome idea of adapting stope to help the elderly, plus library of related stories