Shopping: Little groceries or super- and hypermarkets?

Shopping is an activity that is enjoyed by many people. There are also people who hate shopping and say that it is a waste of time. But whether the people like shopping or not they have to go to a shop, more or less frequently, to by what they need because shopping is a necessity.
I like shopping as every woman. I like shopping in big super- or hypermarkets. I have a very good husband because he likes shopping too. For him it is not a big problem to go with me and do shopping. I prefer big shopping centres where I have everything under one roof. I don`t like going from one shop to another one. It takes too much time and for me it is a waste of time. But when I must do it, I do it. Usually it`s about Christmastime or when I`m looking for some birthday`s presents for my family or friends. Because if you look for something special, it`s better to go to a special shop.

There are three of us in my family so I needn`t go to a grocery every day. A small shopping I do in the small grocery shop near our house. Our neighbours have opened their grocery so I need to go only a few steps to the opposite house and I can buy. I buy there only bread, milk, yogurts and somethimes vegetables and fruits. But the shop is very good when I have forgotten to buy something in a hypermarket.

I go on a big grocery shopping trip two or three times a month. We buy everything what we need. At home I have a shopping list on the fridge and when something comes off I write it on the list. Then when we go shopping I take the list with and I know what I need. In a hypermarket I just take a shopping trolley and then choose the products that I want from the shelves. Everything has a special barcode what is a group of thin lines, black and white, printed on goods for sale, containing informations for a computer which is a part of a cash register. You can pay for all your goods together either in cash or with your credit card. Credit cards are widely accepted now. But be carefully because you can`t pay with your credit card in every super- and hypermarkets! I prefer to pay with my credit card so I needn`t have too much ready money in my wallet. You must be careful because in the super- and hypermarkets there are many pickpockets and you can stay without money or your bag.

Because super- and hypermarkets are so big, they are able to lower prices so the goods are cheaper than in smaller shops. Many super- and hypermarkets have their own brands of the most common products which are always cheaper. You don`t have to carry heavy bags of shopping along crowded streets but to unload them from the trolley into the boot of the car. On the top of all this, some super- and hypermarkets have started to give free gifts to customers who have spent lots of money in their shops. No wonder super- and hypermarkets are so popular.
Super- and hypermarkets are usually situated outside a town, where there is a space for a large car park. Many super- and hypermarkets have cash dispensers and a café.

For most people it is very good when there are more varied supermarkets in one town. The competition is bigger and the prices are lower. For the unemployed people it is a chance to get a work. They can begin to work as a shopassistent, cashier or stores attendant. For some students or unemployed people it is a chance to beginn work as a hired hand.

Some people can begin to work as a distributor of flyers. The advertisement flyers are distributed into letter boxes of the city inhabitants and of the inhabitants in the surroudings. Almost every chain or group of super- and hypermarkets have their own advertisement flyers. These flyers are very important for selling. People can find there what they want with the price. So they can compare the prices with another super- or hypermarkets in the town.

The big department stores started in America and the idea was brought to England by Gordon Selfridge. Selfridge`s is still one of the biggest stores in London. Other London`s big stores are Harrods and Gamages.

In the past, people shopped more often for staple foods. They bought these in local shops in the town or village where they lived and carry them home in bags. Today, many families have a big freezer at home and a microwave oven. People often use a lot of frozen or tinned vegetables. There is a growing trend to go shopping less often and to fill their cars with enough food.

But not everyone wants to buy things in reserve. Someone wants everything fresh. For these people there are many kinds of shops such as department stores, self-service shop and specialized shops such as the grocer`s, baker`s, butcher`s, greengrocer`s, fishmonger`s. For another goods as foodstuff we have these shops: the chemist, ironmonger, haberdasher, florist, newsagent, stationary, pharmacy, bookshop, lingerie, footware shop and butique.
Wherever the customers enter they are attended by shop assistants who are ready to help them.

But with so many people using the super- and hypermarkets, the smaller shops are finding it very difficult to compete. These shops cannot afford to stock such a wide range of products as the supermarkets and neither can they afford to sell things as cheaply as the super- and hypermarkets. But these small shops are good for older people, alone living people who don`t need so much food as young people and people with big family. These shops are very useful for children who want sweets, or anyone who wants a magazine or has forgotten to buy something on their shopping trip to the super- or hypermarket.
Some specialized shops:

· Greengrocery: fruit and vegetables (ranging from products that can be grown in our climate to exotic tropical fruit.)
· Butcher: meat
· Baker: bread, cakes and pastry
· Fishmongers`: fish
· Sweet shop: sweet and ice cream
· Grocery: food and kitchen needs
· Florist: flowers
· Newsagent: newspapers and magazines
· Ironmonger: metal goods (tools, nails, materials etc.)
· Dairy: milk products and eggs
· Stationary: paper and office supplies
· Chemist`s: medicines and ointments, cosmetics etc.
· Haberdasher: buttons, threads, needles, pins etc.

Goods can be bought not only in shops and stores but also in outdoor markets. Almost all bigger towns have a market once or twice a week or permanent market. On the market you can buy cheap or second-hand goods, flowers, fresh fruit and vegetables.

A typically American kind of shop is the drugstore, which usually includes a chemist`s but also sells food, alcoholic drink, stationery and even clothes, as well as drinks and snacks. Rural areas often have roadside stalls where local produce is sold, and many cities have farmers markets`.
A typically British kind of shop is the corner shop. Eightyseven per cent of British people live less than a mile from their local corner shop. A corner shop is a small shop on or near a street corner. Many are run by Indian or Pakistan families. Most corner shops sell food and newspapers. They are open until late in the evening, as well as on Sundays.

Many people who feel that they don`t have time to go shopping, choose products from catalogues. They just fill out the order form, specify the type, colour, and size, and then mail their order. In just a few days or week, the new products arrive in the mail. You can buy nearly everything from catalogues.
Very similar is buying per internet. Via internet you can find many virtual shops. You choose what you want and order it. You can pay for the goods with your credit card per internet or you will pay by the delivering of the goods. Shopping per internet is more and more popular.
Sometimes, salespeople selling various things come to our door, offering to demonstrate their products. This gives us an opportunity to decide if we want to buy something or not.