经济学人257:小型食品店 美味的熟食

 　　Boutique food shops

　　小型食品店

　　Deli-licious

　　美味的熟食

　　As supermarkets flounder, small food and drink retailers³ are booming

　　大型超市困境中挣扎之际，正是小型饮食零售店繁荣之时

　　Chi-chi cheese

　　琦琦奶酪

　　INVESTORS⁴ in Tesco, Britain's largest supermarket chain, could be forgiven for weeping into their Christmas pud this month. On December 9th the retailer² issued its fourth profit warning in five months, cutting its full-year trading forecast by almost a third. Shares plunged⁵ (again), topping off a dreadful year for the former darling of the City. Tesco's only solace⁶ is that it is only doing marginally worse now than its direct competitors, such as Sainsbury's and Morrison's.

　　英国最大的连锁超市特易购投资商若在本月圣诞节掩面痛哭，也是情有可原。易购零售商于12月9号发布了5个月以来的第4次盈利警告，其预测的全年交易额减少了近三分之一。该公司股票（再次）猛跌，结束了这个昔日城市宠儿不如意的一年。唯一的慰藉就是它现在只是比直接竞争对手（桑斯博里与莫里森公司）稍微差了点儿。

　　There is no need for solace at the Keelham Farm Shop, on the outskirts⁷ ofBradford, however. Here it is mulled wine and treats all round, as Victoria Robertshaw, the co-owner, celebrates another fine year and big plans for the future. Founded in the early 1970s, Keelham was one of the country's first modern farm shops, selling meat, vegetables and much else, but only from the family farm or from other local producers. Its growth has been spectacular.

　　而位于布拉德福德郊区的凯勒姆农家店根本不需要安慰。这里到处是热红酒和美食，店主维多利亚·罗伯肖庆祝又一年的好时光与未来的宏伟计划。凯勒姆建于20世纪70年代初期，是全国首批出现的一家现代农家店，主要经营肉类、蔬菜以及其他诸多产品，但只从个体农场或其他当地生产商进货。生意红火，发展迅速。

　　In 2006, Keelham had a turnover⁸ of ￡2m, already large for a farm shop. Today that figure is over ￡11m, and achieved in one of the less prosperous parts of the country. Such is the demand that Ms Robertshaw is investing ￡4m next year in opening a much larger Keelham's in Skipton, a nearby town. Her new outlet⁹ will also boast a cooking school and a café. Much of what it will sell, such as sausages, will be made on site.

　　2006年，凯勒姆营业额为200万欧元，这对于农家店而言已经算是超额。如今的营业额超过1100万欧元，并且是在全国发展水平一般的地区做到的。这是大势所趋，罗伯肖女士将于明年投资400万欧元，在临边的斯基普顿镇开一家更大规模的分店”。毫不夸张地说，新开的专卖店也会促进烹饪学校和咖啡馆的成立。像火腿肠之类的产品，很多会在网上销售。

　　The expansion of Keelham's reflects the robust¹⁰ health of the country's boutique food-and-drink business. There are about 4,000 such businesses today, and more are opening all the time. The National Farmers' Retail¹ and Markets Association, which represents about 300 farm shops, says that many members have reported a 5-10% increase in turnover this year.

　　凯勒姆不断发展壮大，反映了国家小型餐饮业的生机与活力。现在这样的店约有4000家，而且与日俱增。约有300个农家店入会的国家农民零售与市场协会表示，很多成员今年的营业额增长了5%到10%。

　　Some analysts¹¹ expected the burgeoning¹² sector¹³ of small food-and-drink companies to be decimated by the financial crash of 2008. Surely tasty treats from the local deli would be the first casualties as household budgets were slashed¹⁴. In fact, the reverse has happened. The sector has not only survived, but prospered¹⁵, partly due to the change in shopping habits provoked by that same recession.

　　一些分析家曾预测，小型餐饮业这一新兴行业会在2008年金融危机中受到重创。毋庸置疑，随着家庭预算开支的大幅度减少，地方熟食店的美食会第一个受到冲击。而事实正好相反。该行业不仅存活了下来，而且是一片欣欣向荣，这还是归功于经济的不景气，是它改变了人们的购物习惯。

　　After 2008 many consumers started shopping at cheaper supermarkets, such as Aldi and Lidl. Customers also started buying in bulk online. However, in contrast to previous downturns, says Hugh Padfield, a director of the Bath Soft Cheese Company, this time people continue to buy basic products at the cheapest price, and spend the money they save on products that are better quality, like his own renowned¹⁶ Bath Blue cheese.

　　2008年之后，很多消费者开始在卖便宜商品的超市购物，比如德国阿尔迪和利德尔。顾客也开始在网上大量购物。然而，巴斯软奶酪公司董事休·帕德菲尔德表示，与之前经济下滑相比，这次人们还是买最便宜的必需品，然后把省下来的钱用来买质量好一点的东西，比如他公司人人皆知的巴斯蓝奶酪。

　　This sort of “promiscuous shopping”, as the analysts call it, is replacing the traditional once-a-week trip to an out-of-town Tesco or Sainsbury's. Those retailers are therefore being squeezed by Aldi and Lidl undercutting them and the farm shops taking business away at the top end, albeit¹⁷ still on a modest scale. Small producers like Mr Padfield are doing very nicely; he has tripled his turnover in just five years, to ￡750,000, and will struggle to meet all his orders for Christmas. Ms Robertshaw says her prices are not more expensive than those of the supermarkets, putting her produce within range of most shoppers.

　　分析师将这种购物方式称为“混杂购物”，它开始逐渐取代传统的购物方式—每周去城外的易购或者桑斯博里购物一次。阿尔迪和利德尔廉价经营，农家店良性竞争，但还是抢走了高收入人群，但易购或桑斯博里的零售商因此受到了排挤。像帕德菲尔德先生这样的小生产商，生意很好；仅在5年内，营业额就翻了两番，达到75万欧元，而且还会在圣诞节完成所有订单。罗伯肖女士表示，自己商品的价格并不比超市的贵多少，大多数顾客都买得起。

　　Another essential ingredient in the success of the small producers is the increasing demand for locally sourced food. After various scandals inBritain's food production, from “mad-cow disease” to the discovery of horse meat in some products, consumers are much more concerned to know where their food comes from, and how it was produced.

　　小型生产商成功的另一个基本因素是来源于本地的食物需求不断增大。英国食物生产上演了各种各样的丑闻，从“疯牛病”到某些产品中发现马肉，消费者越来越关注对食物来源、食物加工的知情度。

　　Farm shops and delis thus stress the local content of their food in a way that supermarkets, with their central distributions systems, usually cannot. “Provenance is really important now,” says Asad Khan, who has recently set up a luxury ice-cream business in London, called Snowflake. The fact that his gelati are all made of the best quality British milk and are prepared in the store is a large part of Snowflake's appeal. Mr Khan has seen his turnover more than double in two years of business. He even sells pricey tubs of ice-cream that customers would previously¹⁸ have bought only from a supermarket.

　　鉴于此，农家店和熟食店特别注重食物的本地性，而超市在城市中心分配系统下通常难以做到这一点。阿萨德?卡恩说：“原产地现在真的很重要。”他最近在伦敦开了一家豪华冰激凌店，名字叫雪花。雪花的魅力在于：意大利胶凝冰糕都是用英国的上乘牛奶制作，而且是店内现做。卡恩先生开店两年，营业额已经翻了两倍多。他甚至还卖高价格的桶装冰激凌，在这之前，顾客只能在超市买得到。

1 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

2 retailer   

n.零售商(人)

参考例句：

• What are the retailer requirements?零售商会有哪些要求呢？
• The retailer has assembled a team in Shanghai to examine the question.这家零售商在上海组建了一支团队研究这个问题。

3 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

4 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

5 plunged   

v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
• She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。

6 solace   

n.安慰；v.使快乐；vt.安慰(物)，缓和

参考例句：

• They sought solace in religion from the harshness of their everyday lives.他们日常生活很艰难，就在宗教中寻求安慰。
• His acting career took a nosedive and he turned to drink for solace.演艺事业突然一落千丈，他便借酒浇愁。

7 outskirts   

n.郊外，郊区

参考例句：

• Our car broke down on the outskirts of the city.我们的汽车在市郊出了故障。
• They mostly live on the outskirts of a town.他们大多住在近郊。

8 turnover   

n.人员流动率，人事变动率；营业额，成交量

参考例句：

• The store greatly reduced the prices to make a quick turnover.这家商店实行大减价以迅速周转资金。
• Our turnover actually increased last year.去年我们的营业额竟然增加了。

9 outlet   

n.出口/路；销路；批发商店；通风口；发泄

参考例句：

• The outlet of a water pipe was blocked.水管的出水口堵住了。
• Running is a good outlet for his energy.跑步是他发泄过剩精力的好方法。

10 robust   

adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的

参考例句：

• She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。
• China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。

11 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

12 burgeoning   

adj.迅速成长的，迅速发展的v.发芽，抽枝( burgeon的现在分词 )；迅速发展；发（芽），抽（枝）

参考例句：

• Our company's business is burgeoning now. 我们公司的业务现在发展很迅速。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• These efforts were insufficient to contain the burgeoning crisis. 这些努力不足以抑制迅速扩散的危机。 来自辞典例句

13 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

14 slashed   

v.挥砍( slash的过去式和过去分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减

参考例句：

• Someone had slashed the tyres on my car. 有人把我的汽车轮胎割破了。
• He slashed the bark off the tree with his knife. 他用刀把树皮从树上砍下。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 prospered   

成功，兴旺( prosper的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The organization certainly prospered under his stewardship. 不可否认，这个组织在他的管理下兴旺了起来。
• Mr. Black prospered from his wise investments. 布莱克先生由于巧妙的投资赚了不少钱。

16 renowned   

adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的

参考例句：

• He is one of the world's renowned writers.他是世界上知名的作家之一。
• She is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.她以提倡人权而闻名。

17 albeit   

conj.即使；纵使；虽然

参考例句：

• Albeit fictional,she seemed to have resolved the problem.虽然是虚构的，但是在她看来好象是解决了问题。
• Albeit he has failed twice,he is not discouraged.虽然失败了两次，但他并没有气馁。

18 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。