The Large Format Store vs. "Mom and Pop": Is Suburbia a Model for the Inner City?

Authors

  • Marilyn Lavin University of Wisconsin - Whitewater

Abstract

In small towns and suburbs, the arrival of the large format store has had an almost uniformly negative impact on its smaller scale competitors. The present paper examines whether this is also the likely outcome when a large format store enters an inner city area. An analysis of the experience of one such large store suggests the possibility that small town/suburban model may not be applicable to the inner city. In urban areas, population growth. the shopping behaviors of residents, and the ability of small stores to provide specialized product assortments and services may be factors that contribute to the viability of small retailers, who compete against large format stores. Small stores' use of legal technicalities, such as requiring special use permits or enforcing decades-old zoning restrictions, to block the entry of large competitors into major U.S. cites, however, appears to be less effective.

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Published

1999-01-17

Issue

Vol. 10 No. 1 (1999)

Section

Articles

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How to Cite

The Large Format Store vs. "Mom and Pop": Is Suburbia a Model for the Inner City?. (1999). Journal of Small Business Strategy (archive Only), 10(1), 54-69. https://libjournals.mtsu.edu/index.php/jsbs/article/view/402