Oddball
Unobtanium Member
True as that is, the big stores still have a limited selection of merch. The mom-n-pops have moved from being general stores to vendors of boutique goods.I lump Target in with the "et al" part in my post to you, though. Target isn't exactly a mom and pop operation. They're competitive with Wal-mart. We used to have a store around here called Jamesway. Not a mom and pop, but I'm not necessarily being literal when I use that phrase. Jamesway had a more localized distribution chain, but Wal-mart and Target took their market share.
Bradlees is another example of a smaller discount department store that lost out to the Wal-marts of the world.
A good example is Dick's sporting goods or Sports Authority.....Even though they have a shitload of stuff, it's largely middle-of-the-road equipment. If you want top end race skis or baseball gear, you still have to go to a specialty store, which end up being the locally owned businesses.
You used to be able to buy just about anything in the world from Sears, and how are they doing today?