John Sainsbury, the family scion who ran the firm in the 1970s, did: he could pass a shelf of goods and see at a glance if their price was wrong.

ECONOMIST: Face value

Smaller corner shops known as Mercalitos which devote some shelf-space to subsidised goods are also closing down.

ECONOMIST: Hard times on the streets of Caracas

With the company's goods not moving at a pace that satisfied Wal-Mart, it lost prime eye-level shelf space.

FORBES: The Wal-Mart Squeeze