I knew there was a need for radical social and economic change when I first saw the £10 loaf.

I’d heard the rumour of this fabled retail offering, but never believed it, Now, there it was, in the window of an artisan bakery in the west end of Glasgow, a loaf of bread costing the same amount of money I was paid for working a shift in the Doublet Bar, back in the day.

There are lots of little independent shops in that part of the city, selling specialist, high-end cheeses, meat, fish, and bread, all for an arm and a leg. There’s even one dedicated entirely to the production and sale of Portuguese custard tarts. Now that’s niche by anyone’s standards.

And restaurants. Oodles and noodles of exotic eateries of every oeuvre and dimension, representing cuisine from different corners of the globe but none, I recently discovered, willing to serve you a meal after 9.30pm on a Saturday night.

This part of the city is considered a retail success, relatively untouched by the downturn that has negatively impacted the economic health and vibrancy of town and city centres across the country in recent years.

But it’s not a model that’s easily replicable, nor particularly desirable. For a start, anything you buy there is shockingly expensive and restauranteurs - in many people’s eyes the putative saviours of the high street - have clearly identified a narrow window of profitability that doesn’t suit everyone’s requirements.

READ MORE: Labour: Why can't we get excited about them?

READ MORE: Trying to trade in my hopeless electric car has been a nightmare

READ MORE: Artificial intelligence could enslave the human race

Elsewhere it’s an entirely different story. No-one walking along Sauchiehall........

© Herald Scotland