Essay 124 – In recent years many small local shops have closed

GT Writing Task 2 / Essay Sample # 124

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.

Write about the following topic:

In recent years, many small local shops have closed because customers travel to large shopping centres or malls to do their shopping.

Is this a positive or a negative development?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words.

Model Answer: [this is a negative development]

Lately, many local small retail stores have gone out of business due to the lack of customers as most purchasers buy their commodities at the supermarkets or megamalls these days. Although such a phenomenon has brought some conveniences, I believe, overall, this is a negative development as it has severe impacts on the life of the local community.

To commence with, people, these days, enjoy all the comfort and convenience of modern shopping in large shopping malls. These giant malls are one-stop shops where customers can purchase everything they need and get discounts, reward points and other facilities. A case in point is Walmart, where shoppers can buy groceries, clothes, electrical goods, gadgets and many other products all under one roof. Apart from this, people often take a trip to the supermarket in order to spend quality time with their friends and family. The secured premise offers a feeling of safety, for example, children are left in a supervised play corner while parents shop and people love to spend time in such mega malls.

Despite these facilities, shopping at supermalls has led to devastating consequences. First of all, it has created unemployment by snatching bread and butter from small shop owners. Various studies carried out in this field have revealed that unemployment tends to increase with the rise of supermalls. Besides, with the bankruptcy of local small shops, monopoly practices have emerged that affects prices of commodities. According to the Competition Commission report, when a giant supermall has no local competitors, the price is already higher than average. On top of that, supermarkets tend to run the business in an oligopolistic manner to gain unfair advantages. Finally, local small shops often sell products that are related to the heritage and tradition of a country. When these shops go out of business, many traditional aspects are lost.

To conclude, it seems reasonable that this trend is ultimately harmful to the community despite some positive aspects. Therefore, we should buy more from local retailers to save them in the long run.