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In America, dime-and-nickel stores were very common. In Europe they still are. Over the past twenty years, "big box" stores like Wal-Mart have made them largely a thing of the past. With a computerized inventory system and a huge store, they can thrive on lower profit margins than small stores. One of the downsides is people usually drive farther to shop. We get econonic efficiency at the cost of greater traffic.

I wonder if technological advances and higher gas prices might bring back neighboorhood stores. More stores have automated checkouts, so maybe a neighboorhood store could be 40,000 sq ft - not 100,000 ft. You would have a manager and a handfull of people manning automated checkout and inventory.

Wal-Mart is sort of doing this with their "Neighboorhood Market" that sells only groceries.

If there are more neighboorhood stores, commutes are closer, reducing traffic. Some people might be able to walk or bike.

excellent idea, although sounds like a cash oppotunity to do it then doing it for the enviromental benifits... well better than none!

Hi Chuck:

___Let us hope this drops our nations overall fuel consumption. I do not know if you read some of my own post in the previous Walmart thread but they have some really great grocery prices and those groceries were not coming from China, India, or Mexico either! If they can keep those prices to those levels with the smaller stores, I think they have a solution for all of us. Currently, the Walmart and Sam’s Club are < 1 mile away so I will not benefit here but maybe when I finally get out to CA. I will?

___Good Luck

___Wayne