Shutting the Doors After Many Years

One sign of the times is “going out of business” signs on small businesses across the country.  But it’s particularly upsetting to me to see long-time old local neighborhood businesses failing and shutting their doors.  Changing buying habits of U.S. consumers can be blamed for the shutdowns of two long-standing businesses:

In Colorado Springs, Shewmaker’s Camera Shop has closed.  The shop was started during the Great Depression and lasted through many economic ups and downs for 60 years.  The owners finally had to call it quits.  They said that competition from online retailers and large electronics stores made it impossible for them to continue.

And in Milwaukee, independent bookseller Schwartz Bookstores is closing after 80 years.  You guessed it: the big competitors – B&N and Borders – were the reason for Schwartz’s demise.  “Big box” stores and chains account for almost half of book sales, and I’m betting Amazon accounts for a large part of the rest.

So should we just give up and say, “It’s a sign of the times?”  No.  We’ve lost something more precious than just a bookstore or a camera store.  We have lost a piece of American neighborliness.  At Schwartz’s, for example, where I shopped every time I was in Milwaukee, I could chat with employees about the best mystery, or find fiction books that aren’t in any of the big retailers because they don’t have a vast audience. Try doing that at a big chain store.

Two issues I have with these closures of small local businesses:

1. At a local camera shop like Shewmaker’s, you could probably get excellent customer service and advice on what kind of camera you needed.  And where can you get customer service from a large chain?

2. Local businesses bring dollars into the local economy; large “big box” store sales take money out of the local economy.  Closures of local businesses mean fewer local tax dollars for needed city and county services.  Closures of local stores hurt everyone.

I’m sad about the recession and I’m guessing it was just the “nail in the coffin.” These changes have been coming for several years.

But I’m sadder about the changes in our country that make us give up friendly customer service for impersonal and inefficient operations and leave local communities without needed services.  What do you think?

Image source: Newscom