I think by now we’ve been to enough Wal-Marts that I can officially declare myself a Wal-Mart connoisseur, if such a thing exists. And seeing all of these Wal-Marts go by, and expressing their rich, full-bodied flavors individually, it’s got me thinking about these big shopping centers in the context of the recession.
In a lot of these small towns, Wal-Mart isn’t just a place to shop but a genuine community center. I’ve seen teenagers hang out at the Wal-Mart in Cromwell, CT to genuinely hang out. I haven’t been to a single Wal-Mart where at least a few people haven’t gone in with their entire families to grab a meal and then go shopping.
It’s hard to say, based on observation alone, whether or not this has gotten more prevalent because of the recession, but it wouldn’t surprise me. We already know that fast food is doing comparatively well in the economic downturn, so why not the retail equivalent?
The weird, unanticipated side effect of this is that Wal-Marts and fast food places alike seem to be becoming local institutions comparable to town squares. When we were in southern Pennsylvania, I found an ad for the local McDonald’s in Kennett Square, PA, which had a calendar of all of their events for the next week. That included things like “New Garden Karate Kickoff Demonstration” and “Senior Bingo,” but also contests to win prizes from the restaurant.
All of which gives me an uneasy feeling. If one of the side effects of the recession is that the Wal-Marts and McDonald’s of America become the town squares and community centers, then it’s possible that a lot of towns out there are going to lose some of that individual character which I went on the road, in part, to see.
It’s hard to imagine expensive boutique shopping centers doing quite as well in the economic downturn, and their gradual collapse may yield some unforeseen treasures. My mom sent along this Andrew Sullivan post, in which we learn that the massive, high-tech, profane monument to the dot-com bubble that rose up in downtown San Francisco has now become a sort of post-apocalyptic farmer’s market. We’re still far from the West Coast, but I’m going to keep an eye out for other stuff like that as we trundle along. When we get to the Bay Area, snapping some photos of the inside of this place is going to be one of my top priorities.
