toy store vs Toys R Us

[evergreen]

I was out and about in a small town yesterday to see a movie and a Christmas parade. It was a small town that does have a Walmart but really no other department store. The downtown section where the parade was has a bunch of small stores. Stores that sell kitchen appliances (NOT Bed Bath and Beyond), stores that sell children's clothing (NOT Children's Place), art galleries, coffee shops (NOT Starbucks), and a TOY STORE (NOT Toys R Us). The toy store was awesome. All of the stores are cool, but I really loved the toy store. There were sooo many cool toys that you NEVER see in the chain stores like Toys R Us or KB. There were beautiful puppets, interesting games, an assortment of little toys like batons, chattering teeth, wooden puzzles, figurines, etc. The point is...we are so limited in what we can buy when we buy our things at Best Buy, Walmart, Toys R Us, Old Navy, and the like. There are some really neat items out there that are not made by the big companies.

Anyone else have any real stores they can go do their shopping in?

[evergreen]

There was not a Barbie in the whole store!

[sshenry]

I grew up in a town like the one you mentioned. Even now when I go back to visit, the small stores rule and you have to drive 30 miles to find a big box store. The whole atmosphere of the town is different because of it. Everyone who owns a store shops at the other small stores in order to support them (and hence themselves as most everyone returns the favor). Attempts at infiltrating by the big stores have been made over the years, but they never do well, and always end up going out of business because the people who live there refuse to shop at them

Where I now live big box stores rule, and it's depressing as hell. And I've watched countless small stores go out of business because the people that live in this area (DC) are more concerned with getting a bargain than with supporting their community. They don't even know what community really is.

[evergreen]

Things were like that in NJ too SS.

This town had the best Christmas parade I have ever gone to. It went down the street that has a majority of these shops that were open and giving out cookies and hot cocoa. The windows were decorated. I had no idea so many people lived in the area when I saw the turnout for the parade. People had their dogs with them. Everyone was smiling. The vendors were the ELKS, the American Legion, and a private school all raising money for local needy families by selling chilli, hot cocoa and cider. Christmas carolers, Santa lighting a Christmas tree design on the mountain followed by fireworks and people cheering, clapping, and hugging.

There seriously was not major corporate sign to be seen anywhere....

[MiamiSound]

As a society we have come to love things that are prepackaged, plastic, and neutral smelling so that we instantly know that what we are purchasing is new, good, and safe. Big business has successfully reduced small business to unsafe, unsanitary, superfluous, over-priced, back water, hole in the walls. We all know that isn't true, but imagine children who have been raised going on wal-mart. It's interesting how far removed we have become from our humble pre-walmart roots.

[evergreen]

I wonder why in some parts of this country things are one way, and in some other parts they reject it?

[GenericIndigo]

I was out and about in a small town yesterday to see a movie and a Christmas parade. It was a small town that does have a Walmart but really no other department store. The downtown section where the parade was has a bunch of small stores. Stores that sell kitchen appliances (NOT Bed Bath and Beyond), stores that sell children's clothing (NOT Children's Place), art galleries, coffee shops (NOT Starbucks), and a TOY STORE (NOT Toys R Us). The toy store was awesome. All of the stores are cool, but I really loved the toy store. There were sooo many cool toys that you NEVER see in the chain stores like Toys R Us or KB. There were beautiful puppets, interesting games, an assortment of little toys like batons, chattering teeth, wooden puzzles, figurines, etc. The point is...we are so limited in what we can buy when we buy our things at Best Buy, Walmart, Toys R Us, Old Navy, and the like. There are some really neat items out there that are not made by the big companies.

Anyone else have any real stores they can go do their shopping in?

as I'm getting older, I'm tending to support small business vs big business;

I just don't see the big PICTURE anymore in having items as cheap as possible. maybe it's because I see things from a small business owner perspective now; but more because when people are trying to save money, I'm just like... "why?"

[h0bby1]

it is one of the first thing that shocked me when i've been to usa, there is ONLY big mall or big supermarket chain and no little shops, in france there is a big part of things that are in little shop for everything =) it shocked me that there was really few of them in usa =)

[evergreen]

I guess it is an American thing Hobby. I don't think big stores save us money because we end up buying more stuff. There aren't many people I know out here that have big screen TVs or Wii for that matter. People have quality products but they have had them for years and don't have a lot of them. People who go to Walmart often end up buying sooo many things that are unnecessary. My mom has herself convinced so many things are necessary. Paper towels, paper plates, many different cleaning products, cat food can cover for the refrigerator, potato chip bag clips, cell phone for her and my dad (neither of them work), house phone, cable tv, tv on HER CELLPHONE, etc etc...

When those stores are there, the products are there, and there goes our money....

[h0bby1]

well there are still supermarket, but nothing as big as american things =) around here there is two supermarket and hundreds of little shops butcheries, bakeries clothes shop music shop and probably lot of stuff i don't know =) it is the first thing i asked to my host familly when we went shopping, i was like you buy everything in supermarket ?? she was like yeah lol but she was kwowing france a bit she told that she knew it was dfferent here =)


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[evergreen]

*sighs*

....oh to be european....

[sshenry]

I don't think there is a simple reason as to why this has happened; why small businesses are portrayed as unsanitary/unsafe etc, why individuals can't seem to see the importance of maintaining small businesses as opposed to the "savings" from big box stores.

But I think that one of the big reasons behind this trend has to do with capitolism. I'm not talking about free-market, I'm talking about "making a profit at all costs." Most corportations (& big businesses) are primarily focused on improving their quarterly reports AT ALL COSTS. They HAVE to show a profit or the shareholders have hissy fits and there goes their financial backing. They will do this in any way necessary. As a corporation it is required that they do this. The building of community and of individual ownership etc. is not a concern to them - and any corporation that says otherwise is using their words as a marketing tool to make people feel better about buying their product, because if the words don't work, they'll think up a new approach tomorrow.

[sshenry]

*sighs*

....oh to be european....

LOL - I lived in Europe for a year. It was an eye-opener

[evergreen]

Once my daughter is grown and I have my phd, I will live/work in Europe for a while!

[evergreen]

That makes sense SS but why in some parts of the country are the big corporations not important and the smaller stores are? I would say as a trend, Colorado is that way. Even the bigger cities have those stores but they have sooo many other smaller businesses. Is it because there are more creative people in Colorado?

[h0bby1]

well i don't know for whole europe, but in france there is a very long tradition of handcrafting, famillial farms, and little buisness, after the WW2 it took the path also to implement big american stuff and lot of buisness disapeared too paris 50 years ago and now it has nothing to do, there was merely not supermarket 50 year ago, now it became more common and they win lot of terrain too

[h0bby1]

it is a good thing and a bad thing in the same time, but it is true america has been build already with industrial goals in mind, and it can be seen even in urbanisation level, american city are very well organised, streets are all parallele, with numbers etc, it is quite easy to drive and find stuff compared to big european city it is a bit a mess, america has been built with industry in mind and it make lot of things also easier, europe has a long history of lot of different regims and evolution and supermarket and industry are just a chapter in it, so lot of things are still coming from almost medieval tradition that has been there for centuries or mileniums

[GenericIndigo]

it is one of the first thing that shocked me when i've been to usa, there is ONLY big mall or big supermarket chain and no little shops, in france there is a big part of things that are in little shop for everything =) it shocked me that there was really few of them in usa =)

okay Frenchie, I will give +1 to France for this.

but cancelled out: -1 for your women not shaving their underarms

[h0bby1]

you saw this on the american TV right ? lol

[AndreaNicoleo]

Its sad what happened to things, especially things as simple as a toy! Check out places online, or the old part of any small town