Iceland Foods Ltd (trading
as Iceland) is a British supermarket chain, with emphasis on the sale of frozen
foods, including prepared meals and vegetables. Though sometimes confused with
a small country of Viking origins on the fringes of the Arctic Circle, the real
Iceland is a unique British food retailer with over 870 stores throughout the
UK, a further 40 owned or franchised stores across Europe and a global export
business. In 1970, Iceland sprang to life when Malcolm Walker decided
to open a shop in an attempt to make their fortunes. It has come a long way
since.
Recently, there was some
news that Iceland’s ministry of foreign affairs was considering suing frozen foods giant,
Iceland for using its name, 45 years after it was founded. The country is not
seeking to make Iceland Foods surrender its brand, a spokesperson explained; but the nation wants to ensure its firms are able
to register the name “Iceland” across the UK and EU. “We didn’t make any
objections in the beginning, as we were never going to be running any
supermarkets,” but over the course of the years they have been
registering the name in several other categories and companies that have
Iceland in the name, they (the supermarket) have been objecting to them using
the word Iceland in their names or logos.”
Now here is something
interesting read on MailOnline. Iceland workers who wear body cameras to protect
themselves at work have been told not to share pictures of shoplifters to
protect the criminals' privacy. The frozen food giant uses WhatsApp groups to
share information about thieves and thugs with other retailers. But the
Government's data protection unit have called the message threads illegal. Iceland workers have been told not to share
pictures of thugs and shoplifters with other retailers on WhatsApp groups in a
bid to protect the assailants' privacy.
Iceland's chief executive
Malcolm Walker, 70, has called the warning 'political correctness gone wrong'. He
told the Sun: 'The thugs — or as our security manager prefers to call them,
'toe rags' — are apparently entitled to their privacy.' According to Mr Walker,
208 employees have been injured in a workplace assault over the last ten months.
In 2013, almost 200 Iceland branches used body cameras supplied by security
company Pinnacle Response. The wireless PR5 model was originally trialled in
two Iceland branches and proved a huge success.
According to head of security Duncan Miles, the CCTV devices have helped
to prevent employees from being assaulted.
Strange are the ways of
people !
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar
5th Feb 2017.
