The Retailing Revolution

"Whoever said money can't buy happiness simply didn't know where to go shopping." - Bo Derek.

With shopping outlets now located almost everywhere, the question is, where can one not go shopping? Do you seek to satisfy your needs or your wants? Are you going to the mall or the 'High Street'? What about that boutique near your house, with the showcase that never fails to catch your attention?

Today, the average consumer is driven by wants. Lets be honest. Once we have broken free of the binding chains that are necessity and still manage an excess in the almighty dollar, we seek the delight which comes from that gorgeous pair of shoes, or a perfect dress, an interesting new book, the latest technological software or gadget or even to sate the most recent craving of our favorite comfort food.

Hall and Barret (2012) state, "Increasingly shopping is carried out not merely as a necessity but as a social activity and cultural pursuit, linked to identity production" which I am sure many can attest to.

Usually a core activity in cities, there now exists an overabundance of spaces of consumption.
The 'High Streets' of Trinidad are notably the places to go for bargains. However, discomfort, claustrophobic distress and parking limitations are factors of discouragement to some and those who can afford the prices elsewhere certainly do so.

An increasing number of shopping outlets are located in the edge of towns and cities (as shown above, the Auzonville Shopping Mall in a small urban district), usually taking advantage of economies of scale, lower rents and a more planned environment. 
Furthermore there is even the ever-increasing popularity of internet shopping offering greater convenience, wider resource base and an endless assortment of merchandise to consumers.

Edward Bernays often referred to as the “father of public relations," was the nephew of Sigmund Freud, the legendary founder of psychoanalysis. Combining his uncle’s work on the unconscious, primal mind with Wilfred Trotter’s theories of crowd psychology, he came up with PR techniques that manipulated public opinion through subconscious channels. In one of his many schemes, he organized fashion shows in department stores and paid celebrities to repeat the new and essential message, you bought things not just for need but to express your inner sense of your self to others. Particularly, featuring Mrs. Stillman, 1920s Celebrity Aviator:

"There's a psychology of dress, have you ever thought about it? How it can express your character? You all have interesting characters but some of them are all hidden. I wonder why you all want to dress always the same, with the same hats and the same coats. I'm sure all of you are interesting and have wonderful things about you, but looking at you in the street you all look so much the same. And that's why I'm talking to you about the psychology of dress. Try and express yourselves better in your dress. Bring out certain things that you think are hidden. I wonder if you've thought about this angle of your personality."

While Goss (1999) and Blomley (1996) describe retail spaces as sites of cultural reproduction, media critic Mark Crispin Miller, Professor of Media, Culture and Communication at New York University, takes a contrasting vantage point on consumerism:

“Once a culture becomes entirely advertising friendly, it ceases to be a culture at all.”

Where do you go to 'leisure shop'? Do you believe your subconscious is manipulated into constantly wanting? Do you support Miller's views on the loss of identity as a result of the 'consumer culture'?

Links:

Review of Century of the Self - A review of the documentary series by Adam Curtis about Edward Bernays and his public relations techniques.

YouTube - Century of the Self (parts 1-4) - The entire documentary.

References:

• Blomley, N.K. 1996. '"I'd like to dress her all over": masculinity, power and retail capital.' In Wrigley, N and Lowe, M.S. eds Retailing Consumption and Capital: Towards the New Retail Geography. Harlow: Addison -Wesley Longman.

• Goss, J. 1993. 'Once-upon-a-time in a commodity world: an unofficial guide to the mall of America'. Annals of the Association of American Geographers. 89: 45-75

• Hall, Tim and Heather Barrett. 2012. Urban Geography. 4th ed. London and New York, Routledge Publishing. 87-90

First image taken from Confessions of a Shopaholic 2009 Film and last image captured from Century of the Self documentary.