Henry Kissinger once suggested it was a pity that both sides couldn’t lose the Iran-Iraq war. In the looming confrontation between Waitrose, grocer to Britain’s middle classes, and Ocado, online deliverer of its products, it seems a shame that one of them is likely to.
On current showing it will be Ocado. Waitrose’s internet arm has begun competing against Ocado, its long-time partner, in the lucrative London market. This is happening just as Ocado is struggling to maintain one of its key attractions, its delivery record by its personable drivers. In the first half of this year, on-time deliveries fell to 92.7 per cent from 94.9 per cent in 2010.
It is disconcerting to see Waitrose acting so aggressively – a little like watching a cat-stroking, rose-tending neighbour giving someone the finger as she roars down the motorway.