Tales of the Village - convenience factors
By Boingboing
@boiboing (13153)
Northampton, England
January 15, 2019 8:05am CST
We have a small hardware store in the village. Actually that's a lie, it's really not so small but compared to all the chains of mega-stores that are more typical these days, it's quite a small affair. I've long believed that if you need anything practical, it's probably to be found SOMEWHERE in the store - but heaven help you if you need to find it.
I went in and headed straight to the counter as I knew I'd struggle to find what I wanted. Did they have any metal curtain hooks?
The store man rubbed his chin thoughtfully and then took me straight to the curtain hook display. They weren't cheap at £1.25 for 6 but I only needed 12 hooks so I was happy to pay £2.50 for my requirements. The last time I bought such hooks on Amazon I'd paid £3.69 for a pack of 50 so these were not such a bargain.
However, if I'd gone into town for the hooks, I'd have paid a couple of pounds in fuel, a couple more for parking and probably have been tempted into buying a load of other stuff I didn't really need.
Sometimes it's better to pay more for less and have it a five minute walk from home than to order online and wait several days or to travel further for a better price.
11 people like this
10 responses
@MALUSE (69413)
• Germany
15 Jan 19
I know that Canada is the second largest country of the world after Russia. I don't think I could get used to the distances if I emigrated there now. I live in a town of ~45.000 inhabitants and can get everything I want walking there!
I can reach three other countries going by train for about 3 hours, namely Austria, Switzerland and France. Imagine!
2 people like this
@LadyDuck (458702)
• Switzerland
15 Jan 19
I love those stores, we have one not far from home, but for some things they are too expensive. I needed to replace the push starter rubber button of our gas mower last summer. I asked at our local store and they wanted 15 Swiss Francs for 1 button (more or less $16). I ordered from Amazon and I got 2 for the price of $1.50... I could start a business considering how many own a gas mower here.
1 person likes this
@MALUSE (69413)
• Germany
15 Jan 19
The village in Sardinia where my husband grew up has a shop like this. The customers don't go into the shop and look around. They stay in front of the counter and say what they need. Then the owner disappears in the depth of the shop where he rumbles around for a while and then reappears with the article in question.
1 person likes this
@boiboing (13153)
• Northampton, England
15 Jan 19
It's a very old fashioned type of store, isn't it?
@dgobucks226 (34393)
•
19 Jan 19
Now that's putting a good spin on shopping! I like that positive rationale and in this case it all evens out in the end.
1 person likes this
@xFiacre (12616)
• Ireland
15 Jan 19
@boiboing I ordered a book from amazon last week. The package arrived today on time but inside were a pair of Dame Edna type spectacles. I informed Amazon, received an apology and a promise of a replacement asap. The best bit however is that they said I can keep the glasses free of charge. What am I going to do with a pair of Dame Edna glasses?
1 person likes this
@Poppylicious (11133)
•
16 Jan 19
When we moved here we had one of those shops. It closed down a few years later, unfortunately. Such a shame.
1 person likes this
@boiboing (13153)
• Northampton, England
16 Jan 19
I'm very happy that our village can support outlets for most of our daily - and less frequent - needs. We have 2 pubs, an Indian restaurant and a Chinese takeaway, a chip shop and two coffee shops, a small supermarket, a greengrocers, a butcher, a post office, a jewelers, 4 hairdressers (yes! 4), the recycling centre and a health centre. Oh, and not to forget, a library.
@JESSY3236 (18957)
• United States
15 Jan 19
I don't have any stores walking distance here.I lived in a small town when I grew up, and we had a convenience store, a library, and a post office in walking distance. I bought some shower curtain hooks last year from Amazon. I love them.
1 person likes this
