Independent shops can help to nurture social skills

I was shopping in one of our independent town centre shops the other day. There was a small boy with his Mum and clutched in the boy’s hand was one of the items they had selected which he solemnly placedon the counter. His mum then gave him some money which he shyly handed over to the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper rang up the goods and while he was doing so mum asked the little boy how much change he could expect from the money he hadhanded over. There was a pause as the small brain ticked over and delight whenthe right answer came out. The shopkeeper, for his part, then counted out thechange verbally into the child’s hand and gave him his receipt plus the goodsin a bag. Off went one small customer with a smile on his face, cheered by his prowess in arithmetic and also better equipped than he was when he came to cope with interaction with adults and others as he grows.

Being a father I am all too aware that today’s children face an entirely different lifestyle to that of my own young days. How the pace of change seems to accelerate.

One thing that does concern me is theseemingly decreasing number of opportunities that children have to practice and hone these vital inter-personal skills outside of school. Life today can bevery much a solo thing with I-pods and I-pads and computers and electronic games which in turn may encourage isolation rather than integration.

Supermarkets and other self service outlets are places where that quickening pace I mentioned earlier is all too evident. They offer little opportunities for any kind of interface between young shopper and seller. The objective of these kinds of outlets is to get you in and out as quickly as possible. They are not the places for small talk. For a child there’s no time to have a go at “buying” something or handing over the money.

In this fiercely competitive world of retailing this is one area where our independent shopkeepers are streets ahead. It’s good to know that they and this experience are part of a never changing landscape. Long may it continue.

See you next week

Lee Boswell
Town Centre Manager