Mom & Pop Shops musing ETAtAhQvwG+wwQ7PMYeHr8ZpfMU5fVhrHQIVAMpFFHK0I4cRdSrTHiO8LahIpava ContentDisposition: Inline

jmcquown)WROTE: The closing of Second Avenue Deli got me thinking. The loss of Mom & Pop type places (or them being driven out of business by huge conglomerates) is just sad. When John and I travel we purposely seek out the small diners to eat. We won't eat at Waffle House or IHOP. We try to avoid places like Applebee's and Chili's. We want a place with some history, not a franchise. The Mom & Pop's aren't always great but sometimes they are really wonderful! Used to be, not far from here, an old hardware store where you could go and buy what you needed without needing to hitch a ride on a forklift to get from one end of the store to the other just to pick up some nails. These little places have been run out of business by Home Depot and Lowes. There's a huge benefit to the Mom & Pop type places. They get to know you. They greet you by name when you walk in the door, rather than having a blank-faced "greeter" (aka WalMart) handing you a shopping cart. And there may only be one cash register, or perhaps two, but there aren't 12 checkout lanes with only 2 open. Earlier this morning I was down at the little store down the street. They know me there. I bought a number of items including (OB Food: bacon, milk and some rice). If I'd had 54 cents I could have given him exact change but I didn't so I started to pull a larger bill out of my wallet. He said, "No, no, this is fine. Have a good day!" When do you ever find them doing that at some place run by a big chain or at a franchise? Never. We are losing a lot as these wonderful little places start fading away. It makes me sad. Jill-------------------------------------------------- RESPONSE: Well put and SO true. A number of family owned business's in our area - metro Detroit- have or are going to shut their doors forever that have been around for decades. Only a few small hardware stores are left now, Damman's Hardware that was always mentioned on Tim Allen's series Home Improvement are closing Family owned restaurants that were around since I came to Michigan in Dec. 1980 are dropping like flies also. Meijers & Lowes are only 2 miles from me but are so huge my feet are swollen time I check out plus using a cane doesn't help. I rather drive out of my way further down the road to shop at a smaller more friendly business but the way it looks that is coming to an end fast. PS- I don't do WalMart regardless.