One of my favorite activities is browsing and lingering at bookstores and record stores. You can still do that in most major cities, but in the suburbs, it has become quite a challenge; unfortunately my best shot is at the mall. And, like most men, the mall experience, with it vast parking lots, multiple levels, hyperscents and fast food courts, just isn’t worth the hassle.
For decades, the big chains of all kinds have replaced small neighborhood shops. Everybody enjoys the low prices the chains charge, and they made a profit for a while. Then the on-line services like Amazon and E-bay drove prices down even further, and Brown brings the stuff right to our doors.
So the big chains replaced the small neighborhood stores, and now the on-line websites are pushing out the big chain stores. At the High Ridge Road shopping Center in Stamford, CT last month, the Borders bookstore closed. A favorite place for regional consumers to browse books and magazines and enjoy a coffee, our Borders closure was just part of the nation’s second largest bookstore chain’s failure. (They closed another one on the Norwalk-Wilton border, too.) Employing more than 10,000 employees, Borders could no longer turn a profit. Five years ago, at the other end of the shopping center, Tower Records closed its doors.
Stamford's Borders Closes
I miss the neighborhood retailers—the record and bookstores and, yes, the local pharmacies. From our local CVS, where we spend a small fortune every month, we receive a daily impersonal automated phone call telling us that the prescriptions are ready. We make our way over there, we’re greeted by staff that asks you how you spell your last name (Tell me, is there another spelling for “Diamond?”), and then are told that there’s a mistake and the prescriptions are not ready. Even better, at the local Walgreen pharmacy each month the clerk quizzes us how the prescription could possibly be appropriate for a six year old. “It’s for a dog,” I announce each time. By the time you should get to know the staff at these big chains, there is a new employee you’ve never met before.
The brand new CVS at Stamford's Bull's Head
I was reminded while on vacation at the Jersey Shore last week how nice it can be to experience small shops where you can actually have a conversation with knowledgeable staff. In Stone Harbor, I chatted with the book-loving clerk at the small bookstore, and the local sandwich shop knew my “usual” order by my third visit. I suspect that this kind of relationship still exists in small towns all across the country. It’s becoming rare in the suburbs and rarer in the big cities.
Now that the big chains are disappearing, is it time for the small neighborhood stores to return? I, for one, would be willing to pay more at a local pharmacy or a bookstore if they would resurface. Is there a place in today’s marketplace and rigorous web pricing, for neighborhood shops? Has the digital explosion caused the music stores to disappear forever, with bookstores soon to follow? Or are we destined to a future of clicks on tiny screens on smart phones and tablets instead of conversing with knowledgeable humans? Perhaps it’s just another case of hopeless nostalgia.
My greatest fear, however is not the disappearance of the neighborhood store, but that the limited profitability ultimately leads to the elimination of the stuff that used to be sold in the stores.
Great story Jim. Here in Trumbull, we still have a local, independent pharmacy. MacKenzie’s Pharmacy in Trumbull Center has been serving me and my neighbors for longer than the 25 years I’ve been in Trumbull. They greet me when I walk in, and they fill a need that a chain mega-drug store could never fill. I feel it is my responsibility to shop at these local independent shops, I wish more people felt the same way. If we don’t support them, then all we’ll be left with will be faceless chains.
Comment by Bob — August 21st, 2011 @ 6:44 pm
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Comment by The Case For Neighborhood Shops – Taking a Stand – Connecticut News « Feeds « Local News Feeds — August 22nd, 2011 @ 2:46 pm
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Comment by The Case For Neighborhood Shops – Taking a … – Connecticut News « Feeds « Local News Feeds — August 23rd, 2011 @ 4:08 am
Jim,
Unfortunately, I think it’s over.
This future that you envision of clicks on the screen replacing conversation is becoming our present. How many times have we all eaten out to see the “family” or the “couple” (I use the quotes to make a point) at the next table tapping away at their I-phones, speaking or making eye contact only to show the other person what is on the I-phone’s screen?
As for the small merchants’ comeback, are Americans going to once again value customer service? Highly unlikely. This is the same country that threw away (nearly) our entire manufacturing sector in order to obtain cheap products, disposable technology, veneered furniture, and homogenized “fast fashion”. Quality and durability do not matter to the masses, nor does customer service. These characteristics instead are becoming the purview of the wealthy and the niche buyer.
Our country is such deep trouble, and it’s not simply limited to our economy or government’s solvency. We are precipitously losing our common culture and bonds, and becoming Balkanized, both in terms of culture and class. We have a diminishing sense of personal accountability, preferring to see ourselves as “victims” in one form or another. We cannot create wealth in the long term, because we produce nothing. The vast majority of Americans cannot buy a home, furnish that home, buy a car, or go to college without taking massive amounts of debt. Our healthcare decisions are being made by a faceless, and ever-consolidating insurance industry, which in reality is no better than our bloated government taking control. And, most of us are forced to send our children to daycare because the decision whether to be a one-income or two-income family is no longer ours to make.
We’re on the fast lane to serfdom.
Salvaging, unshackling, re-igniting and fostering individual entrepreneurship is America’s only chance of reversing this course.
Thank you for bringing up the topic.
Comment by Gregory Lodato — August 24th, 2011 @ 12:08 pm
Come to Darien and stroll the Post Road—many unique small shops and restaurants with outdoor dining. We’ve had free outdoor concerts every Friday this summer—right downtown in Grove Street Plaza. It all has a wonderful “community” feel.
Comment by Carol W. — August 25th, 2011 @ 1:12 pm
Nice observations. I do think people value the relationships. I disagree that it is rare in the city – most likely it corresponds to a walk-ability index. I live in the middle of San Francisco, do not own a car, and know, and am known by all my favorite merchants and restaurants, with the exception of Trader Joe.
Comment by John MacDougall — August 25th, 2011 @ 2:15 pm
Great topic, one that I’m very passionate about. Walk-ability is definitely a factor for small town shopping. We’re fortunate in Bethel to have a downtown area with shops and restaurants, as well as free concerts and festivals and two farmer’s markets. Encouraging people to support local businesses is the key to the success of maintaining a vibrant local economy. Some people do get caught up with the big box stores and online shopping, but when they start shopping locally they do appreciate the difference. As a small business owner in Bethel, I make sure that I always thank my customers and tell them that I appreciate their business. I also refer them to other local businesses whenever I can. Additionally, there are some newer organizations that try to encourage people to support their local businesses like The 3/50 Project, Proud to Be Local and Shop Local. Even some of the online news companies post info about local businesses on their Facebook page. Last but not least, word-of-mouth advertising will never die. I’ve gotten more business from referrals than from any other source of advertising. Too many of us have the entreprenurial spirit to allow the brick-and mortar stores to be a thing of the past.
Comment by Lorraine Schrameck — August 31st, 2011 @ 7:43 am