Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

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biribiri
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Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby biribiri » Sat Apr 07, 2012 11:24 pm

It certainly seems to be around here. :(
On our last walk of the day me and my faithful hound pass by 3 local bars. At 10pm this evening the total clientele between two of them numbered three, the other one was empty save the owner who was mopping the floor before closing up for the night.
Two or three years ago at 10pm all three bars would have been noisy places full of people just starting to enjoy their Saturday night out.

anyroads
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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby anyroads » Sun Apr 08, 2012 12:10 am

Yes,

I was the sole patron of one bar last week at 10.30 pm, and a week before that, the same situation in Ireland. I am not too sure if it is the Spanish and Irish economies, or me ?

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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby Miro » Sun Apr 08, 2012 12:24 am

Opencor: gone
Macdonalds: gone
Zara: gone
Carrefour: gone
Base sports: gone
Several banks: gone
All but a couple of estate agents: gone
Countless small shops, bars, cafes, restaurants etc: gone

This is just the town centre - I think it's similar down at the beach. Fortunately, we now have at least 3 fish foot spas which should help us through these difficult times :crazy:
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markwilding
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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby markwilding » Sun Apr 08, 2012 1:22 am

Thursday night the streets were packed -big football match-This morning the supermarket was busier than normal. Tea house full this afternoon
Crisis is getting worse because not many people have gone away.Normally these places are dead over Easter.

oliveview01
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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby oliveview01 » Sun Apr 08, 2012 11:53 am

There still seems to be new shops opening here, one closes and another opens. The Urbano shopping center has a cinema, a Burgerking and a Pizza place, everything else has shut down, not one shop open. It was abvious from day one the place would be no good, folk shop in the center, not walk to the edge of the town to the small shopping center. I would say there is about 20 shop units at the most there. The town has all the shops it needs in the center and the streets off. According to our Spanish friend, an old Mayor thought the town needed a shopping center :wtf: say no more!! :crazy: :crazy:
Weeknights the bars are quieter, but come Friday and Saturday night, it is totally different.

The gypsies are back outside LIdl begging :thumbdown:

Free at Last
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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby Free at Last » Sun Apr 08, 2012 12:44 pm

At the moment, although unemployment is terrible, we seem to have more businesses opening than closing (although how long they will survive is anyone's guess). A branch of McDonalds opened a few months ago, a new Aldi supermarket a few weeks ago, at least three bakeries/pastelerias that I've seen, an old house on one of the main streets that's been dilapidated for years has just been renovated and is due to open any minute as a rather upmarket looking (for here at any rate!) bar and cafe. A couple of new businesses have also opened on the poligono on the outskirts of town, creating a few new jobs there. But we need more, many more.

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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby Lavanda » Tue Apr 10, 2012 2:53 pm

Things still normal here BUT there's more people talking about the crisis. :D

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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby peteroldracer » Tue Apr 10, 2012 3:14 pm

I only wish that the economic downturn would inspire businesses to get their act together and improve efficiency and customer service.
Our Termos (electric water heater) failed on Thursday (obviously it knew it was a fiesta so could not be replaced for 2 days) so we set off yesterday expecting to find lots of suppliers open after being forced to close for two days. Huh!! Senaxa and Roca on the poligono in Velez were firmly shut as were nearly all the other firms there. Fortunately Tuvesa were open, had a good replacement in stock, gave me 40% discount and 2 guys carried it out and put it in my 4x4.
We ordered some bedroom furniture on the 2nd Feb from Bufalo, allowing time for delivery before visitors after Easter. We were told 2-3 weeks delivery. 5 weeks later after a phone call and a visit to the store, the bedside cabinets were brought to a meeting point near our home, and when the driver saw I had a 4x4 he insisted on me putting them in the back rather than him driving down the 1km to the house...the remaining furniture was promised "in another 3 or 4 days".
2 weeks later my OH snapped, and rang them to say if the rest of the order was not in our house by 2 days time, the order would be cancelled and she would come down to fill in the complaints book and demand her deposit back in cash on the spot. 3 further phone calls from them, wingeing that they had problems etc (to which OH said she did not give a damn about that, she merely wanted the room furnished before guests arrived. Next day, phone call from van "with you in 20 minutes", which they were, and efficiently delivered the stuff and drilled and plugged the wall and fixed the mirror.
It is obvious that the stuff is what was in their showroom, but what the ^%&*, we have a furnished bedroom!
Why is it that no-one progress-chases orders from their suppliers, and if there are problems, rings the customer to tell them what is happening?
Absolutely abysmal, and we will never cross their threshold again.
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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby katy » Tue Apr 10, 2012 3:40 pm

My friends Son has just lost his job along with two-thirds of the worforce in a large motor concession in Marbella. He is 22 and has been there since he left school. Recently the staff haven't been paid regularly and all are owed thousands of euro which it looks very likely they will never get!

I read today that a elderly care home owned by the Junta has had no gas for cooking and showers from Friday until yesterday, due to unpaid bills :(

Most of the people I know are ok. (for now) as they are mainly public sector workers/health service.

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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby annfoto » Tue Apr 10, 2012 3:45 pm

It is so bad here now that even 2 Chinese shops have closed down. :wtf:
Our biggest problem is with Mercadona. In their wisdom they have decided that people will only be buying cheap Spanish whisky because of the 'crise' so now only stock 2 bottles of Jonnie Walker a week. The chances of being there at the right time are slim. :crazy:
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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby country boy » Tue Apr 10, 2012 5:11 pm

I know!!!!!! Same store; there are only 3 J&B...barely enough! :thumbdown:

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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby Free at Last » Tue Apr 10, 2012 5:14 pm

peteroldracer wrote:I only wish that the economic downturn would inspire businesses to get their act together and improve efficiency and customer service.
Our Termos (electric water heater) failed on Thursday (obviously it knew it was a fiesta so could not be replaced for 2 days) so we set off yesterday expecting to find lots of suppliers open after being forced to close for two days. Huh!! Senaxa and Roca on the poligono in Velez were firmly shut as were nearly all the other firms there. Fortunately Tuvesa were open, had a good replacement in stock, gave me 40% discount and 2 guys carried it out and put it in my 4x4.
We ordered some bedroom furniture on the 2nd Feb from Bufalo, allowing time for delivery before visitors after Easter. We were told 2-3 weeks delivery. 5 weeks later after a phone call and a visit to the store, the bedside cabinets were brought to a meeting point near our home, and when the driver saw I had a 4x4 he insisted on me putting them in the back rather than him driving down the 1km to the house...the remaining furniture was promised "in another 3 or 4 days".
2 weeks later my OH snapped, and rang them to say if the rest of the order was not in our house by 2 days time, the order would be cancelled and she would come down to fill in the complaints book and demand her deposit back in cash on the spot. 3 further phone calls from them, wingeing that they had problems etc (to which OH said she did not give a damn about that, she merely wanted the room furnished before guests arrived. Next day, phone call from van "with you in 20 minutes", which they were, and efficiently delivered the stuff and drilled and plugged the wall and fixed the mirror.
It is obvious that the stuff is what was in their showroom, but what the ^%&*, we have a furnished bedroom!
Why is it that no-one progress-chases orders from their suppliers, and if there are problems, rings the customer to tell them what is happening?
Absolutely abysmal, and we will never cross their threshold again.
We bought our kitchen from Bufalo 9 years ago and had a terrible time with them. When we placed the order we were promised delivery and fitting within 2 weeks - it took 3 months for the majority of the units to arrive and a further 2 before it was completed as some cupboard doors were missing from the original delivery. Obviously they haven't improved in the meantime. We would never buy anything else from them either.

I've just read that Velez-Malaga has approved the licence for the planned Juvigolf development in Chilches - over 1,500 homes, a 4 star hotel and a golf course. Obviously granting a licence doesn't mean that the project will actually go ahead, and it seems a strange time to be contemplating such a thing, but if it does it will provide some much needed jobs in construction in the short term and a few permanent ones in a hotel and golf course in the longer term.

anyroads
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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby anyroads » Wed Apr 11, 2012 8:44 am

katy said..

"Most of the people I know are ok. (for now) as they are mainly public sector workers/health service".

as Shakespeare would have put it...

Thereby hangs a tale. Same as Ireland, everyone appears to be employed by the state, and they are striking for better conditions / pensions etc.

anyroads

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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby murbisa » Wed Apr 11, 2012 9:07 am

You lot did better in Buffalo than we did. Ordered a suite and waited weeks. Went down there and they said it was at the port. Would get it in next week. After another couple of weeks we went back to discover they has totally "lost" it. Just asked for our money back and went elsewhere. I would never go there again. With this sort of service I can't understand how they are still trading.

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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby Mowser » Wed Apr 11, 2012 11:02 am

We went to Bufalo 5 years ago and ordered lounge furniture. They said it would arrive the next day. It did.
5 stars from me.
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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby Miro » Thu Apr 12, 2012 2:37 pm

annfoto wrote:It is so bad here now that even 2 Chinese shops have closed down.
It was mentioned in the papers, and one of them is just up the road from me: a dozen or so Chinese shops have been closed down for selling alchohol to minors. 1) Who are these "minors" who have the money to buy it? 2) Surely a fine and a warning would be appropriate, but shutting them down? More unemployed, less taxes. Makes perfect sense. :crazy:

There are so many businesses failing here, seems to me that the council should be doing everything in its power to help and encourage individual businesses - instead of sinking them in a mire of red tape and petty regulations. Instead, a completely pointless and unnecessary eyesore of a museum has been built (although not finished) with a billboard proudly proclaiming that over 6 million euros has been allocated to the project...a museum, presumably, to the past when there was actually a reason for people to visit the place.
I also think that the few fat cat landlords (there's 4 or 5 "families" here who own virtually everything) should be forced, through rent controls or something, to lease their vacant premises to people who are willing to have a go, if only the overheads are realistic.
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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby annfoto » Thu Apr 12, 2012 4:41 pm

It was mentioned in the papers, and one of them is just up the road from me: a dozen or so Chinese shops have been closed down for selling alchohol to minors.
Must be different shops, they didn't sell alcohol or food.
One was a large clothes shop which lasted about 3 years but I don´t think their fashions appealed to enough people. The other was a large bazar type shop, the staff were horrible, made you feel uneasy almost as if they assumed you were there to shoplift unless you could prove otherwise.
Both were in the old town and I am pleased that the original Chinese bazar is still there, well run by a very nice family :thumbup:
Ann

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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby Julie » Thu Apr 12, 2012 5:39 pm

This morning on the Spanish news they were saying thatin Sevilla 1 out of every 5 shops is now shut down, but that the chinese were still constantly opening new ones.
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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby Devils Advocate » Thu Apr 12, 2012 5:54 pm

Hope a few of them bazars vanish in Torre, I must spend a third of my holiday waiting outside them for her to come out clutching 2 euros worth of crap that never see's light of day again :evil:

"Go for a drink love while I have a quick once round" she says...yeah right, I'd be p1s5ed by half ten every day if I did that :D
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Re: Is the "crisis" getting worse where you live?

Postby country boy » Thu Apr 12, 2012 6:43 pm

This is Andalucia "GURU" speak presumably :silent:


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