Tesco has come under fire from pub trade body the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR) for what it claims is the retailer's hypocrisy in selling alcohol at below cost over the May Day Bank Holiday weekend.
Its criticism came after Tesco ran a TV commercial over the weekend under the tagline “Carlsberg don't do price promotions. But we do.” It advertised 20 bottles of Carlsberg Export at half price, £7.49.
In February, Tesco urged the Government to bring in legislation to ban the sale of discounted alcohol – although executive director Lucy Neville-Rolfe warned at the time: "Such proposals would have to apply to all retailers of alcohol otherwise they would be ineffective, as those looking for cheap alcohol would simply shop with lower-priced operators not covered by the legislation, undermining our business and achieving nothing."
Nick Bish, ALMR chief executive, said this week: “To borrow Carlsberg's line: Pubs don't do hypocrisy. Tesco do.
“We doubted Tesco's intentions in February and over the Bank Holiday weekend we were conclusively proved right. Their Carlsberg promotion is unacceptable and in complete contrast to the highly responsible approach to drinks pricing adopted by Britain's pubs and bars.
“This is probably the most hypocritical offer in the world! We hope Tesco will start practising what they preach and adopt a more responsible approach over the next Bank Holiday weekend, later this month.”
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