Superstores Cornering the Market

I like smallrt stores myself so I can get what I need and get in and out faster. i hate crowded grocery stores I like to go to small ones myself.

I do my darndest to stay away from these super stores. I hate Wal-Mart!!! I'll go to the next town for something, or go without, before I'll enter a Wal-Mart. I prefer to frequent small local businesses, rather than look for big superstores.

i love to shop in the large supermarkets , I take Mum and Dad shopping every week but I take them to the smaller stores ( smaller supermarket) as they are not able to walk all around the store , My hubby and I usually go another day on our own and have a good look around , I still go to some of the small local shops too , the thing is that the small shops have to charge a lot more as they cant buy in bulk , xx

Yes, it a sad case nowadays. The thing with the superstores they are so impersonal. I am fortunate in that I live in a community where there are still some small stores like Ace Hardware, and the service I get their is 100% better than at Lowes.

For now, the trend seems to be in that direction. I don't care for monster stores that much either. But it is convenient to be able to buy many different kinds of things under one roof. I think eventually the super store will grow tiring and the cycle will swing back toward more smaller mom and pop shops. Maybe. This is why I would prefer to live in a smaller town with maybe one or two big store close by.

I get my groceries from target and costco once a month only. Superstores have good prices and I'm not worried about buying stuff that are near expiration because the products sell out fast. Yes, it's crowded and the check out counter has a long queue. That's why I just go once a month. If I do need some stuff during the week, I go to this small Asian store right on the corner where I live. In and out of the store, but the Vietnamese clerk there doesn't speak English.

Since no one seems to do anything about it, we probably will be some day. The little stores can't compete witht he prices so people go to the bigger stores. Sure people say they like the smaller stores and that is fine, but not enough people do.

I see the local superstores on a huge decline in this area. While they may have put the hurt on many businesses, I think the American public has taken a turn on their view of these monsters. Some will never walk away from the alluring prices but many have realized that you get what you pay for more often than not. They also realize that you pay a price for these huge conglomerates to take over and it's often too late before you realize the consequences.

Exactly the same thing is happening to us here in Graz, Austria! Inner city shops are closing down and big shopping centres are opening up in the outskirts. Gone are the little specialty shops with children's clothes, crafts, embroidery, and knitting, all sacrificed for the impersonal big shops, which are just copies of shops in other cities and even countries. Although lately I have also seen that even malls are opening up in the Internet too! The individual personalised shops seem to be a thing of the past now, a pity!

In our town, you have basically three choices for shopping: Walmart Supercenter, Country Mart Grocery Store or Dollar General. I like each one for a different reason. Country Mart is great for Meat and Produce and they have a deli. Dollar General is great for household stuff and some food. Walmart works for everything else. If I had to only pick one store it would probably be Walmart just b/c it is the only one where I can get everything in one place. However, I don't like their meats or their produce and I hate the crowds and all the walking. Also in the last roughly 5 years their quality has went down alot. LIVE IN PEACE

Hello friends, I am an Indian. I have read all the responses in this discussion curiously. We in India are crrently facing the problem of superstores encroching into our market, causing alarm among the small store owners. It is estimated that there are more than forty million people in India, making their livelihood from this small trading business. Walmart is all set to enter into the Indian market. Besides indigenious giants like Relliance, Pantaloon and Spencers are already established in the market. The small trading community which of course include the employees of those shops are in a real threat of loosing grounds. There are other apprehensions also in he minds of the people regarding the threat it raises to the farmers. It is yet another subject. Thank you friend for the topic.

I love little shops but they do tend to be a lot more expensive so I only use them for the really important things - like with Niamhs shoes - she has had to wear special orthotic insoles so I am very careful with shoes and pay about 7 times what they would cost from a superstore to get her properly fitted and supporting shoes. For ordinary circumstances I cannot afford to shop at the little stores much as I would love to! I believe there will always be some small shops but I fear that you are right and many are disappearing because they are unable to compete with the larger chains! xxx

i do prefer the smaller store over the big shopping malls only for the simple fact i can go in the store grab what i want,and really dont have to wait in a huge line and have people shoving into you and getting hit buy a shopping because someone is in a rush lol.i do like the big malls but i try to stay away as much as i can.i prefer a smaller crowd to deal with,especially if i have my kids with me.

Although i use smaller stores more than i use superstores, i would prefer to use a superstore than a smaller store because there is more availability, more choice and best of all are the cheaper prices. I use small shops daily though so i do not have vendetta against small shops but i would definately prefer to use a superstore. I also respect that alot of people prefer to use smaller shops because they wish to use the local businesses and it is more convenient.