I live in a village quite close to the city. Every time we had to purchase a lot of groceries, we had to visit the town to buy them or order online from stores like Amazon or Flipkart.
Smaller purchases would be from nearby village shops like Thomas's shop or Gopalakrishnan's which sell stuff ranging from bath soaps to slippers and even a packet of Maggi. These would hang from a string and people would go there during the evenings to catch up on the village gossip and have a smoke or two while purchasing the day's requirement of groceries from the shop. The nearby home-run bakery would also be busy with customers who buy bread, buns, chocolates, and even fresh juices and fruits. Indian snacks are also sold.
source-wikimedia commons
The above is still the norm.
A few months ago, a shiny new shop was opened. A big, sprawling new supermarket. Right in the village. It is called Reliance point. Run by a corporate, this supermarket is slowly taking over the business from the small shop owners.
Why?
The points sell goods for a discount and when a customer buys groceries that have it all btw, he or she is given a point chart and these points can be redeemed for a real cash discount for the next purchase.
So, we decided to test it out and went shopping. Yea, we need not dress fancy as we go to the city. It is only a few kilometers away. The goods are arranged neatly and we can pick freely without anyone hanging around us.
The shop has everything, literally. Even cakes and bread and juices. Also ready to prepare foods too and vegetables, milk and meat.
The boys at the cash counter deal with the customers quickly and also give discounts on previous purchases.
Well, have Thomas and Gopalakrishnan suffered?
It is quite early to say so because not everyone does monthly shopping. It is often the middle-class log(people) who do the shopping for one month. The daily wage laborers buy groceries only for two days maximum. They do not have refrigerators to store milk and meat. They also do not store much rice because many of them are given free meals at their workplace. So, why cook?
The ponds and rivers are abundant with freshwater fish and people either go fishing or buy fish from those who do. So, there is that.
What I meant to convey is those big corporates tend to wipe away small shops and enterprises and local businessmen like Thomas and Gopalakrishnan do not stand a chance. People are enamored by the flashy lights, well-furnished showrooms, and above all, discounts. So, after a while, word-of-mouth publicity would take over and small shop businesses would be ultimately affected.
You might argue that they cannot affect mill owners. Think twice. Ever since companies like Sarah's and Everest came into the scene, people in our state are not even bothering to grind their own rice powders or spice mixes. They just buy it off a shelf in a shop.
I do hope that such small shops too are given a chance to operate in villages because it keeps the human connection alive. As it is, the difference between a village and a city is fast disappearing in Kerala and this would be the last straw.
Do you guys have such small shops in your area?
