All of us are consumers, we buy stuff out of shops, and we want everything as cheaply as possible. 

But in order to be consumers, we need to get money from somewhere, be it as an employee, benefits or a pension. 

So whilst fierce competition is good for us on one hand as consumers, with companies fighting each other to give the lowest price (or the illusion of the lowest price), it’s not so good if you lose your job because your employers have been forced out of business by a rival with deeper pockets selling at a loss to put the competition out of business. 

And once they have the market to themselves, they will likely increase prices which is bad for everyone. 

Even strangers in another part of the country losing their jobs can effect us, because they would have been potential customers for whatever keeps you in a job, and paid National Insurance which pays people’s benefits and pensions.  One or two might not make much difference, but when there are a lot, it has a knock-on effect. 

Profiteering is bad, and companies need healthy competition to stamp it out.  But equally, companies being squeezed until they make a loss, is bad for everyone.  Like most things, there is a happy medium.