A local out of town shopping centre we visit fairly regularly used to have a Holland & Barrett store. We’d pop in occasionally for odds and ends we can’t easily find elsewhere.
The last time we visited the shopping centre we noticed a new store being fitted out. We scratched our heads for a moment, wondering what was there before until we realised it had been the Holland & Barrett store.
We only remembered because on a previous visit, the woman serving there had told us it was closing. If we hadn’t known the store was closing, we wouldn’t have noticed its absence for ages and even then we’d have forgotten where it was.
Modern out of town retail seems to be like that. Stores open, stores close but they barely generate enough impact to be noticed when they are gone.
3 comments:
I've made the point elsewhere that at one time the name of a bank was carved in the stone of the pediment. Then, later, the name of the bank was cast in brass plaque fixed to the wall. Later still the name of the bank appeared on a plastic plaque, and even later a plastic sticker in a window. And now you often find that a business' offices carry no identification at all beyond a street number.
So now you find yourself giving directions like "go down here until you find the place where the bank used to be and turn left. Carry on until you see a Church which is now a nightclub..."
Since 1970, relationships can be more volatile, jobs more ephemeral, geographical mobility more intensified, stability of marriage weaker.
~ Mary Douglas
One reason is that all the big companies strive to create identical brand stores. It's cheaper, standardises the product, and leads to a completely unmemorable shopping experience. At H&B I buy the sort of stuff that 40 years ago I used to buy in hippie shops. You used to get stones in the lentils, but at least you knew the owner's name.
DJ - similarly we still occasionally see Victorian schools with two entrances, above which are "Boys" and "Girls" carved in stone. Our granddaughter's new school looks much like a car showroom.
Sam - I suppose a chain of identical stores creates a strong sense of familiarity too. We know what to expect even if it isn't inspiring.
Post a Comment