I was thinking about the loss of local shops a lot recently. There's definitely a confluence of factors at play, and it's not just price economics vs online & big box.

One thing I think is that theres just never enough time. Everyone is so over-scheduled. The white collar work day really has expanded vs what I remember my dad doing 30-40 years ago. There's more two income households than in the past. Parenting is far more active for both parents than it's ever been, and kids are being shuttled between events all weekend.

Most local shops are not open past 5pm or at best 6pm, and often closed Sunday. Who is off work by then to stop by?

Easier to click buy on amazon, and stop by the big box store after dinner Saturday open til 9pm for anything you need sooner.

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bix6 2 hours ago | parent [-]

Was just talking with an older colleague about this. Work used to end Friday afternoon. The amount of emails I get (and send) over the weekend means there is truly never any off time.

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liveoneggs 2 hours ago | parent [-]

reading and responding to those on the weekend is your choice

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bix6 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Yeah that’s a privileged point of view. You lose clients if you aren’t responsive enough.

	▲	blitzar 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Yeah that’s a privileged point of view. You lose your job if you aren’t responsive enough.

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afavour 2 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

It isn’t, really. If it’s the expected norm in your job then there’s a real chance you’ll lose your job if you don’t do it. And particularly the kind of jobs market we see today that’s a real risk.