LETTERS: SUPERMARKETS CHANGE SHOPPING

To the editor:

Some men do the grocery shopping, and others have gone with their wives. It is an art, and it can also be a chore.

I recall when supermarkets began in Buenos Aires in the 1950s. It was quite a rapid change from the old markets to the new type of shopping and the new type of marketing. I think they began with about 20 retail outlets. It was a new adventure. The shoppers were mostly new to the experience. Pushing those carts was also something different. The sides of one's shoes became battered and bruised after being hit by the carts of inexperienced shoppers.

However, it didn't take long until the local people could push those carts around those aisles with the best of them. They recognized the values in prices and the greater variety and selection of the items being sold. Supermarkets soon became a part of the shopping itinerary and soon dominated the market.

Small items needed in a hurry were and still are bought at the more convenient corner grocery where they still had time to talk of the latest news and gossip. The corner store still employs other members of the family. Sometimes the conversation was in several languages, and shopping could be a real adventure.

For some, a trip to the corner store still has its merits.

IVAN NOTHDURFT

Cape Girardeau