Have I missed another announcement?
Probably like a number of members we're doing a 'long' tour for the first time since the pandemic. The niggles over lack of WiFi and the new booking system have been well documented elsewhere but what has happened to the camp-site shop? To date (we are travelling from S.West of England to Skye) the shop appears to be a thing of the past: no milk/bread or calor gas seems to be available,let alone 'loo roll. In the more remote caravan-sites is it really welcoming after a long journey to not even have the basics on hand but instead be given directions to the nearest shop 6 miles away? Have I missed an announcement about no site shops in future?
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Club isn't big on announcements.
Have a look at this thread about site shops. Will give you more insight.
https://www.caravanclub.co.uk/club-together/discussions/sites-touring/uk-sites-touring/site-shops/
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There was a thread about this somewhere and I or someone will try and find it. Basically yes they are being cut back as it is up to the site wardens if they want to run one or not. I'm not sure if you knew but the shop was run as a business independent of the club using their own money to start it up and their own time to keep it stocked. So some wardens felt it was not worth it.
As I recall though basic caravaning needs like toilet fluids would still be in stock.
I'll try and find the thread.
Post edit: Thanks WN
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There has been discussion about it but I don’t recall an announcement which may be due to the fact that shops in reception were run and funded by site wardens rather than CAMC. I believe H&S/food hygiene/allergy labelling regs have made it impractical for wardens to continue.
Are you a motorhomer or caravanner? It’s really easy to stop at a village shop with a MH and far from impossible with a caravan. We've done the SW to Scotland many times and never used a site shop for more than the occasional ice cream. I’m sure you’ll be fine.
Edit: Cross posted with Corners again and WN 😂
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From that thread by a serving warden (thanks to JK):
Morning
So to run a site shop has always been a voluntary decision by the staff. Moving on, in the light of "Natasha's Law" we cannot sell any home made produce, only items that are prepacked. Moving on further any staff wishing to have a shop selling anything, be it papers, milk, accessories etc etc have to run it as their own business. It's a liability thing. Working hours will come into it soon a s well. In my opinion running even a small shop is labour intensive and the upfront cost at the start is a choker so I must admit it's quite liberating not having to run around on your rest days getting stock and sitting forever on the phone ordering stuff and actually to have a days rest.
In a further post:
We still supply Calor where available along with green toilet chemical and rock pegs, all these are supplied through the club
JK
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I’m sure all wardens are capable but other issues tend to be the determining factors.
A couple of sites have shops run by staff employed for that specific purpose.
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Capability. That's a good word. I'm more than capable, I just don't want, have to or feel the need to run an additional business in my own time. I'm employed to run a site and I exhaust my working hours and some doing that. Fair play to those club employees that are seemingly more business minded than me I guess.
JK
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Not just that as you’ll have seen in JK's older post quoted above by Corners.
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Don’t forget you was an Arkwright as your whole job, the site managers hold 2 jobs, site manager & an Arkwright🤷🏻♂️
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Here’s a shot of a campsite shop in Cornwall -organised by the site owners not the wardens - so there’s fresh bread every morning, milk, local beers, stuff in the freezer, buckets and spades for the kids and so on. But this Club’s attitude is “We have provided a warden and that’s all we need to do. Let them sort it out”
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