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the end of cornershops - what does it mean?
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
Story - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4714572.stm
so does anyone actually care that all the little shops will be gone and replaced by faceless corporations like Tescos and Walmart? I\'ve been reading Captive State by George Monbiot, and the popular argument given by supermarkets is that they offer a wider variety and more choice to the consumer, which at face value seems true enough, but from reading the book its quite clear to me that once the whole food chain is controlled by a handful of huge supermarkets, what you in fact get is less choice and less variety.......what does everyone else think?
Also the article mentions a parliamentary report which claims the erosion of small independent shops equates to the erosion of small communities, which I think is something that is massively overlooked in today\'s society......i don\'t think it\'s a big leap to say that no sense of community spirit results in stuff like vandalism and the general \'don\'t give a shit\' attitude that we are seeing in today\'s youth.........i myself notice a huge difference in rural and urban areas having moved to london 4 years ago from the country, sure you get vandals in the sticks but in general everyone has a lot more respect for each other, you don\'t get fuckers littering everywhere, etc etc.........i\'m not suggesting for a minute this is all due to our cornershops disappearing, but i do think it\'s all quite intricately linked, and this is just one aspect.........what are your views?
so does anyone actually care that all the little shops will be gone and replaced by faceless corporations like Tescos and Walmart? I\'ve been reading Captive State by George Monbiot, and the popular argument given by supermarkets is that they offer a wider variety and more choice to the consumer, which at face value seems true enough, but from reading the book its quite clear to me that once the whole food chain is controlled by a handful of huge supermarkets, what you in fact get is less choice and less variety.......what does everyone else think?
Also the article mentions a parliamentary report which claims the erosion of small independent shops equates to the erosion of small communities, which I think is something that is massively overlooked in today\'s society......i don\'t think it\'s a big leap to say that no sense of community spirit results in stuff like vandalism and the general \'don\'t give a shit\' attitude that we are seeing in today\'s youth.........i myself notice a huge difference in rural and urban areas having moved to london 4 years ago from the country, sure you get vandals in the sticks but in general everyone has a lot more respect for each other, you don\'t get fuckers littering everywhere, etc etc.........i\'m not suggesting for a minute this is all due to our cornershops disappearing, but i do think it\'s all quite intricately linked, and this is just one aspect.........what are your views?
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I'm going to let somebody else explain for me. I read this article in the Easyjet inflight magazine last month, with one writer lobbying against big supermarkets and the other one in favour.
I agree entirely with the one expressing her opposition to them.
http://easyjetinflight.com/features/2006/jan/thebigdebate.html
However, a lot of supermarkets aren’t nice. Take fair trade stuff for instance, while most people think buying fair trade stuff is doing something noble and good (and it is to an extent) the supermarkets make more profit on fair trade bananas for instance than usual bananas by hiking up the price a bit more and getting a fatter profit margin. Hence if supermarkets are making extra profit out of us when we buy fair trade wouldn’t it make more sense to buy the normal stuff and give the difference (which would be greater) to a development charity working in the third world?
Regardless of the perils of supermarkets this government isn’t going to do anything to curb their power and nor would a future Conservative one. And while people are getting concerned about the power of supermarkets people aren’t going to start doing all their shopping at the local Spar. But it would seem 'ethical' supermarkets, namely Waitrose are going to benefit.
Tesco, Walmart etc corner the market (to a greater degree than they already have)...any diversity or choice in shopping in the community disappears...said monopolising supermarkets hike their prices and reduce the quality and range of their service. Everyone is essentially fucked, but have no one but themselves to blame because they were rubbing their hands together with glee when the proposals for a shiny new supermarket plonked through their letterbox.
This exact thing is happening where my parents live in Newcastle, I really don't like it and am planning to protest it.
when the big boys move in ...especialy in small towns ...the town centres or high streets slowly get boarded up ...creating ghost towns.
more choice ...less oportunity.
thousand upon thousands of small family bizz gone ...never to return.
none of you will be leaving school/uni ...with the thought of opening your own shop of any kind would you?
soon ...the same thing will happen with tradesmen.
there will be no self employed/small businesses before long.
why?
cos of the great cloning machine ...mc dees ...strbucks subway ...same boring old crap the length and breadth of the land.
Yes, because aspartame, hydrogenated oil and all the other crap they use to drop the cost are such good quality, aren't they?
There's nothing like a chicken that's been shot up with antibiotics, kept in a tiny cage in misery and then sprayed with chemicals that are poisonous, frozen, thawed out and microwaved, is there?
I cook my own meals with ingredients mostly brought from small shops.
If people wanted to give up cheap convenient shite like that they wouldnt shop there would they?
True. People are getting what they want. I'm just pointing out that what they are getting is shite.
The way things are going you'll also be eating processed shite from a giant out of town monster mart within 20 years. Same old problem when you let the state interfere.
Except they don't really. My local market is far cheaper than Tescos or Sainsburys for fresh fruit, veg and things like tinned tomatoes, chick peas, kidney beans, rice etc.
Errr...some people can't afford anything else.
So do the shops near me but super markets are alot cheaper for a very large variety of packaged products, meat, alcohol and processed stuff.
Definitely! I was making a chilli the other week and my jaw almost hit the floor when I saw how much Mr. Tesco wanted for his kidney beans.
I also balked at their 70p (or whatever) swedes, anyone who has ever been to a fruit and veg stall would know that prices of supermarket fresh produce are extortionate.
Alcohol is cheaper in my local offie, meat in my local butcher.
cabbages in morrisons yesterday were 99p!
35p at the local farmers market.
Corner Shops for ever!
I keep telling myself it has to be a joke.
I've started growing my own cress, now...step one towards complete subsistence living. :thumb:
Although Waitrose seem to be pretty good with locating in the middle of towns.
Supermarkets are all well and good if you have a car, but bollocks all use otherwise.