I live 45kms from the nearest town. Some of the journey is by unsealed, rough and bumpy road. (These details will become significant later!)
Scone is a middle sized country town, blessed with two supermarkets.
One of these, Woolies, has decided to construct a new liquor outlet as part of its store.
Now I have no real objection to this, despite the fact that Scone has five pubs and three liquor stores already. I am not a wowser and love a glass of red wine at night.
The issue is that in order to construct the liquor outlet, Woolies are demolishing the toilets that were located within the store, one male and one female.
Management staff have informed the community that they do not intend to replace the toilet block, I know because I asked them and they told me.
I shop once a week and as I arrive I avail myself of the facility - remember the distance and the road - there is often a queue of women waiting outside the door; menopausal women, pregnant women, elderly women and women with toddlers in tow who cannot wait.
Some have travelled from Bunnan or Rouchel or Gundy to the nearest supermarket.
Sometimes there is a man but never a queue.
I imagine that a business plan and model has been done for this liquor outlet, by some man who does not appreciate the consequences of removing the toilet block.
They certainly have not considered that at the other end of town, Coles have a toilet block conveniently located down a ramp, with not one, but two female toilets.
Now if I were a shareholder of Woolies I would be worried.
Custom will drift south very quickly.
The boys will have a wide choice of outlets for their slabs of beer and bottles of rum, but the women will have their outlets reduced and they will combine their shopping with their need to feel no tension while trundling down the aisles.
So Woolies beware. Do not take our bladders so lightly!
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