David Biesterfield, director of the Noble Organisation, considers the town is not big enough for the Palace Pier and the West Pier (Argus, May 26) but one of the basic tenets of salesmanship is never to knock the opposition.

If Mr Biesterfield is so concerned, then why does he not purchase the West Pier and use it to complement his own pier, as they will each serve a different kind of visitor? The West Pier would be visited by the more mature holidaymaker who may not wish to be part of the more boisterousness of the Palace Pier.

Competition has never harmed anyone except those who fear it.

-WJ Packe, Grantham Road, Brighton