Nostalgia Isn't What It Used To Be

 Nordstrom and Zellers

   This post is not about either of those commercial establishments since you will already have read a lot about them over the last few weeks. If you haven't, I will say simply that the purveyor of luxury goods (Nordstrom) left Canada, while the discount chain (Zellers) returned. Zellers, by the way, closed hundreds of stores about a decade ago, and was bought by Target which more recently closed shop and left to go back to the more robust southern market. Sears had already gone and Lowes and Bed Bath & Beyond are also exiting. What this all means I will leave for the more mercantile-minded to explain to you, but to put it in balance sheet terms, I think it likely constitutes a 'loss.'  I could be wrong. Apparently nostalgia-seeking Canadians are lining up for Zellers-branded red sweatshirts and Dollar General stores and pay-day lenders are multiplying quickly enough to more than fill the commercial real estate spaces left empty by Nordstrom. 

But What About Schnurr's?

   My real intention, which is not clear from that digressive first paragraph, is to bring to your attention a story you did not read. It is about a General Store that is located in Linwood, Ontario. It has been there for 165 years and if you are a fan of true nostalgia, you can go shop there or, in September, take a tour during "Door's Open Waterloo Region." 

  More importantly, if you read the article I will provide about Schnurr's, along with my earlier post about “Dorfläden,” you will learn a great deal about the history of 'General Stores', which is more interesting, I think, than knowing about the current retail environment. 

Sources:

   "This Family-Owned Grocery Store Has Been Serving the Linwood Community for 165 Years," Carmen Groleau, CBC News, Mar. 23, 2023.

   “Dorfläden, is the German term for "village stores", which appear to be coming back. The post about it is Here and if you are interested in old-timey things like "Service Stations", see Here. 

The Bonus:

   The picture of Schnurr's is from Google Street View. If you are longing for the good old department store days, here is a scene from inside of Kingsmill's which used to exist in London. It is also from Google and more about that is found in this post: "Detour."