Essay Topic: In recent years many small local shops have closed because customers travel to large shopping centres or malls to do their shopping.
Is this a positive or a negative development?
The Essay: It is a fact that people prefer visiting malls and big shopping complexes nowadays, to shop rather than going to smaller retail outlets in their own area, which has resulted in several of these individual stores closing down. I believe that while this shift in purchasing pattern is a favourable outcome for consumers, nevertheless, it has a detrimental impact on smaller shopkeepers.
First, people find large shopping malls to be more convenient because it is easier to procure all their daily or monthly requirements in one place. For example, in India, Big Bazaar, a big retail chain located in many cities, is a preference for most people to buy items of basic needs. Second, the time people spend to purchase necessities, has drastically reduced owing to the fact that everything is available under a single roof, where customers cannot only shop but also have entertainment and food.
However, this trend has led to the elimination of small retail outlets who are now forced to seek alternative means of survival. Earning a livelihood is now a challenge for such small businessmen. Moreover, the erstwhile personal connect between customers and the not so big shop owners, has dwindled. For example, in the past, local retail stores gave credits to customers and better offers due to their personal touch, which has now been replaced with a uniform marginal cut in costs in big malls.
In conclusion, in my opinion, the present-day closure of myriad small scale shops with the entry of huge shopping complexes, is surely a positive progression, primarily for shoppers, albeit compelling the small nearby business owners to seek greener pastures.