The Scrivener: The Glover Has Gone
…Some of us look back to a childhood when there was a simple choice. Chemists sold medicines; bakers sold bread; the post office sold stamps; butchers sold meat; and so on, with hardly any extra goods to entice customers. In those days, grocers sold groceries and hardware came from an ironmonger…
Brian Barratt highlights dramatic changes in retailing down the centuries.
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Things aren't what they used to be. The chemist sells shoes, chocolate and teddy bears. The bakery sells milk, fruit juices and fizzy drinks. The Post Office sells thermometers, CDs and computer printers. The butcher sells chutneys and sauces. The newsagent sells glass paperweights, brass ornaments and ceramic vases. The greengrocer sells eggs, fish and sesame crackers. The flower shop sells filigree fairies, wooden witches and funny fridge magnets.
Some of us look back to a childhood when there was a simple choice. Chemists sold medicines; bakers sold bread; the post office sold stamps; butchers sold meat; and so on, with hardly any extra goods to entice customers. In those days, grocers sold groceries and hardware came from an ironmonger. 220 years ago, things were even more specialised.
In Newark, Nottinghamshire, with a population of about 10,000 in 1791, there were 13 butchers, 12 grocers, 10 bakers, 6 ironmongers and 3 chemists and druggists. There were also two businesses described as "grocers and chandlers", which might mean that they also sold soap, candles, oil and paint. The list includes two "grocers and dealers in spirits" and you know what they sold. But then there was also a "grocer and ironmonger" and a "grocer and draper", so perhaps this contradicts the idea that everyone specialised in one line of goods.
Some trades have disappeared from our shopping centres. For instance, Newark had a currier. Along with the three saddlers, he worked with leather. Three blacksmiths and a farrier plied their trade with iron, as did two whitesmiths and two braziers and tin men, who worked and polished various metals including iron and tin. An edge-tool maker made sharp bladed implements, a nail maker made nails, and two spoon makers made spoons. There were two mantua makers. A mantua isn't a sea creature. It's a loose fitting gown.
A significant difference in shopping for clothes 220 years ago can be seen in the fact that Newark had 13 shoe-makers, 5 taylors (tailors), 4 hosiers, 4 makers of breeches, 3 stay-makers, 2 hat-makers, a haberdasher, and a glover. Whether or not the presence of no less than 37 victuallers and 20 public houses indicates a difference is open to question. We still have night clubs, corner pubs, and other places where people can buy or imbibe beers, wines and spirits, but perhaps we don't have one for every 150 people. Then again, we don't have as much reason to resort to ale for the sake of our health. It is now safe to drink water from a tap
Meanwhile, in the past 50 years, small hardware shops have closed down and been replaced by retail warehouses offering either the heavy metal DIY type or the electronic WYSIWYG type of hardware. Family grocers have disappeared and we are obliged to go to the supermarket instead. Even the local chemist's shop is threatened by large so-called cut-price chemists. Perhaps that's why they have to sell teddy bears to keep their heads above water.
Amidst all this change, in Australia at least, we have more bakers than ever, with the proliferation of excellent hot bread bakeries. And, of course, in this electric age, we have large stores specialising in washing machines, fridges, TV sets, and anything else you can plug in.
Although we have variety and choice, things are not what they used to be. A new type of variety, based on market domination and shareholders' dividends, is replacing the old style based on individual skills, enterprise, and personal service. Thank goodness there are still a few shops where the person behind the counter actually knows something about what they sell.
© Copyright Brian Barratt 2009
