Declining quality of free samples at major stations e.g. Leeds

[frankmoh]

Waterloo often used to have free samples of food, now its just ones for dogs

 

[Magdalia]

Anyone old enough to remember commuting before the financial crash of 2008 will remember the glory days of people giving out free samples at stations.

Almost every other week they seemed to be giving away things - new chocolate bars, fizzy drinks, cheeze, frozen pizzas etc. This kind of froze up a bit after the crash, but you'd still occasionally come across a stand with something interesting. Some times outside the station door, sometimes inside.

Handing out free samples is a marketing tool, usually for new products or brands. The producer is hoping to turn a few free samples into a stream of frequent paying customers. The free samples weren't being handed out just to give you something for nothing.

What has changed is social media. The marketing budget is now more effectively spent on influencers doing instagram and tiktok videos.

Nowadays it seems to be nothing but pet food for some reason.

Although cute cat and dog videos are popular on social media, it seems that they have not been harnessed effectively as marketing tools for new brands of pet food. Cats and dogs don't use social media, and pet owners still need a free sample for their cat or dog to try, not just an influencer recommendation.

 

[sad1e]

Loads of decent stuff at Waterloo! Drinks, choc, ice cream etc. Also catfood for the more discerning commuter.

Waterloo is the only London terminal I've seen samples of products being given out in recent years , haven't seen anything similar at any other London terminal.

 

[Stathern Jc]

memories of a ferry back to Holyhead from Dublin years ago where a couple of drunks piled onto the train pleased as punch at their last minute duty-free purchase of multiple cases of........ShandyBass

Drunk and ShandyBass in the same sentence?
Well done Sir!

 

[8ace]

Waterloo is the only London terminal I've seen samples of products being given out in recent years , haven't seen anything similar at any other London terminal.

I've seen stuff a VIC fairly recently.

The only place that I can recall actually free booze given out is the duty free a Gatwick Airport, usually a tiny shot of some disgusting spirit. Have to hotfoot it to spoons for an overpriced pint of lager to wash away the taste

 

[Nym]

I've seen stuff a VIC fairly recently.

The only place that I can recall actually free booze given out is the duty free a Gatwick Airport, usually a tiny shot of some disgusting spirit. Have to hotfoot it to spoons for an overpriced pint of lager to wash away the taste

Costco does sometimes. But that's not a railway station.

 

[CharlieSpotted]

You'll occasionally get samples of stuff in Birmingham... Red Bull seem to do it a bit... but not at New Street Station, they tend to pitch up in the square outside Bullring. I wonder if the same is true elsewhere - do it at shopping centres rather than stations?

 

[voyagerdude220]

You'll occasionally get samples of stuff in Birmingham... Red Bull seem to do it a bit... but not at New Street Station, they tend to pitch up in the square outside Bullring. I wonder if the same is true elsewhere - do it at shopping centres rather than stations?

I wonder if TOCs/Network Rail charge them for permission to be on their Stations whilst they give out their free samples, whereas Shopping Centres don't? (Just a very random idea)

 

[johntea]

I remember when Arriva took on the Northern franchise (which was quite a big deal at the time) I turned up at Leeds station bright and early thinking they might be handing out some goodies to celebrate and promote that to find...absolutely nothing

East Midland Trains knocked it out of the park back in the good old days with the Red Dot Days...a tenner for basically unlimited travel on any of their services for the day plus a goodie bag packed full of stuff!

I wonder whatever happened to the two friendly blokes at Leeds every morning that were rather keen to hand out every single passenger that passed through the concourse a copy of the Metro newspaper!

 

[styles]

Alcohol free beer is, without a shadow of a doubt, the work of Satan and all his Lancastrian followers

15 years ago I would've said the same, when the choice was Bavaria 0 or Becks Blue. But there are some genuinely great AF beers around now. AF ciders even more so - ciders are so sweet that I doubt many people would even notice if you switched their cider with the AF alternative. There are of course still some crap AF drinks in between the good ones but it's a whole different picture to what it was even a decade ago.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

Manchester Piccadilly is usually quite good for samples and seems to be a bit of target station for marketing companies owing to the cities numerous advertising agencies and marking groups.

In the last year there's been energy drinks, coca cola, Liquid IV rehydration salts, Fabric softener, Cat Food, Nicotine gum, aftershave/perfume, Protein balls, coffee sachets, alternative milks, bacterial yoghurt drinks and Yoghurt off the top of my head.

Personally, I would prefer to be able to get across the small concourse to read the destination board without the marketing hyper-ventilators with their stalls and loud pa blocking the way. But hey, I'm just a paying punter.

 

[Broucek]

Although cute cat and dog videos are popular on social media, it seems that they have not been harnessed effectively as marketing tools for new brands of pet food. Cats and dogs don't use social media, and pet owners still need a free sample for their cat or dog to try, not just an influencer recommendation.

I get a LOT of cat food adverts on social media. But my cat has very specific dietary requirements so it's not working for them....

 

[Baxenden Bank]

I get a LOT of cat food adverts on social media. But my cat has very specific dietary requirements so it's not working for them....

Your cat needs to like / dislike as appropriate to train the algorithms into offering suitable adverts.

 

[m0ffy]

In Germany they pretty much treat that as an isotonic (which it pretty much is).

Erdinger sponsored the Triathlon Club Relay several years ago, and they gave away several cases of the stuff to participating clubs. It tasted alright, but the hangover (from 0% beer?!) was appalling.

 

[Broucek]

Your cat needs to like / dislike as appropriate to train the algorithms into offering suitable adverts.

Good tip, thanks

She's pretty good with tech. She was horrified when she realised that the screen I plug my laptop into when working at hone wasn't touch sensitive..

 

[Bletchleyite]

Erdinger sponsored the Triathlon Club Relay several years ago, and they gave away several cases of the stuff to participating clubs. It tasted alright, but the hangover (from 0% beer?!) was appalling.

That's called dehydration from the run and is nothing to do with the beer.

If drinking zero alcohol wheat beer gives you hangover like symptoms without being dehydrated, speak to your GP about a coeliac test. Could also be low blood sugar.

 

[Trackman]

I get a LOT of cat food adverts on social media. But my cat has very specific dietary requirements so it's not working for them....

I do too, I dont have a cat!
The issue is I once watched an online social media advert about it and the ad-bot reeled me in.

 

[Bald Rick]

The only place that I can recall actually free booze given out is the duty free a Gatwick Airport, usually a tiny shot of some disgusting spirit.

Oir Sainsbury’s gives out free booze quite regulalry (a plastic shot glass of something winey)

I wonder if TOCs/Network Rail charge them for permission to be on their Stations whilst they give out their free samples, whereas Shopping Centres don't? (Just a very random idea)

NR certainly charge for use of the ‘event space’

 

[8ace]

Oir Sainsbury’s gives out free booze quite regulalry (a plastic shot glass of something winey)



NR certainly charge for use of the ‘event space’

where is your sainos? asking for a friend

 

[johntea]

Manchester Piccadilly is usually quite good for samples and seems to be a bit of target station for marketing companies owing to the cities numerous advertising agencies and marking groups.

In the last year there's been energy drinks, coca cola, Liquid IV rehydration salts, Fabric softener, Cat Food, Nicotine gum, aftershave/perfume, Protein balls, coffee sachets, alternative milks, bacterial yoghurt drinks and Yoghurt off the top of my head.

...or you could turn up like I did earlier this year to find them filming The Piano on the concourse!

 

[ETMbloke]

I remember when Arriva took on the Northern franchise (which was quite a big deal at the time) I turned up at Leeds station bright and early thinking they might be handing out some goodies to celebrate and promote that to find...absolutely nothing

East Midland Trains knocked it out of the park back in the good old days with the Red Dot Days...a tenner for basically unlimited travel on any of their services for the day plus a goodie bag packed full of stuff!

I wonder whatever happened to the two friendly blokes at Leeds every morning that were rather keen to hand out every single passenger that passed through the concourse a copy of the Metro newspaper!

Not long after SWR took over from SWT, on an early Tuesday morning on 1P16 or it's equivalent at the time. On every seat, SWR placed a bag, which contained a wrapped croissant, possibly some orange juice and some other freebies.

Perhaps as a sweetener to get the punters onside after 20 years of Stagecoach.

Edit: found picture, only a croissant, jam and orange juice

 

[Mike99]

I know this is aimed at the UK, but I recently went to Amsterdam and on both sides of the station, Centraal Square and the Ij side, there was Coca Cola stands giving away free cans of the standard type. I shrugged it off at first but noticed there were six altogether and none of them could see the other.

My Yorkshire senses activated and I made a sweep of all of them and obtained twelve cans of coke, coke cherry and coke lemon which meant I didn't need to navigate the small Albert Heijn store by the tram stops and saved me money! (oddly, because I make a large number of visits a year, I have that firm's app on my phone)

#

On my return via Newcastle, there was a promotions thing giving away Walkers - though for what reason I do not know

Maybe the walkers had had a tough day out and about in Northumberland and could only be given away rather than make there way home!!!

 

[Table 25]

They were giving away beer outside Brighton station this summer, unfortunately it was alcohol free so naturally I declined.

Such beer is incredibly useful when given away free. When I worked at Victoria in the 1990s, I picked up as many 4 packs of the stuff as I could, over the course of a one week promotion. One could use it to gate crash parties late at night after the pubs closed (as one did in those days) brandishing the stuff, as it looked most impressive at a quick glance and thereby get let in with ease. Once in, one would, of course, simply drink the proper beer that others had brought.

 

[spyinthesky]

Alcohol free beer is, without a shadow of a doubt, the work of Satan and all his Lancastrian followers

Including Theakston, Wold Top & Ilkley?

 

[DelW]

15 years ago I would've said the same, when the choice was Bavaria 0 or Becks Blue. But there are some genuinely great AF beers around now. AF ciders even more so - ciders are so sweet that I doubt many people would even notice if you switched their cider with the AF alternative. There are of course still some crap AF drinks in between the good ones but it's a whole different picture to what it was even a decade ago.

(My bold) - not all ciders are sweet! Some of the fizzy ones may be, but good pubs will often have a choice of medium and dry ciders in boxes or hand-pulled.

I agree that low alcohol beers have improved massively. The Erdinger weißbier mentioned earlier is good, and last weekend I was drinking a very acceptable Adnams Ghostship 0.5% in a bottle (as I was driving).

 

[Cdd89]

I am not sure if it still goes on as I am (thankfully) no longer a daily user of the station, but London Bridge used to have huge but temporary stalls for american sweet sellers in the open concourse area. Temporary in the sense that they (and their stalls) would come and go. I don't know if that area (off the St Thomas St entrance) was a defined concession but I found something about it a little off. Maybe just the nature of the business felt a bit shady!

I recognise this may be controversial but I don't think Network Rail should be licensing out for any of this sort of thing, and that includes free samples. Stations should be functional, especially for those with disabilities. The only people in a station should be travellers, the people who work for the railway, retailers inside defined concessions, and (as long as they are not harming anyone) those with an interest in trains and stations

 

[Bald Rick]

a very acceptable Adnams Ghostship 0.5% in a bottle (as I was driving).

Thats the best of the zero/low bitters.

 

[Acathater]

I wonder if the new curry house at Lancaster station will have free samples.....

 

[Iskra]

An abundance of free McCoys Crisps were being liberally distributed at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium today for the NFL. That’s the quality of freebie we need.

 

[johntea]

I was in Leeds Trinity today and got some free dog treats plus some money off vouchers for the product in question

Good job I have a friend with a crazy cocker spaniel who will happily taste test those