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Is there a price to pay for Progress

Ken1171

Ken1171

Esteemed
Contributing Artist
I guess that fits this thread's title. In Japan, the arrival of large American chain stores (Like Walmart) was the beginning of the end for some traditional businesses in Japan. For instance, the Japanese used to buy liquor from small family-owned liquor stores for centuries, like a tradition. There was no other reason than tradition. Liquor was sold in fancy handcrafted packages that identified which house it was coming from, and tended to be more expensive. With the advent of Walmart, these kind of traditional, ancient practices have gradually disappeared from Japan, along with the family businesses that carried them on over the centuries. The fact that Japan has been under a 30 years recession has also pushed people to seek for cheaper alternatives. That has been especially tough on the Japanese because they were coming from a 400 years period of being closed to the outside world, where nowadays, some have wished it had remained as such. They didn't want things to change, but globalization makes that inevitable.
 
Terre

Terre

Renowned
Hornet3d said:
I can relate to that, as with so many aspects of life you try to condemn the practices that you disapprove of and praise or reward those that you do.

I remember when I was a manager in a camera shop we had a customer come in and have a demonstration of a camera, he was back a few days later to purchase a lens for the same camera which we were lucky to have in stock but was difficult to find elsewhere at that point in time. He wanted a discount on the lens or something to sweeten the deal but I was having none of it making sure he was aware that I was not pleased that he used my shop for the demonstration but clearly purchased the camera elsewhere. Two days later there was another customer in the shop buying the same lens, he did get a discount and even a free filter thrown in, the rest of the staff were somewhat confused so I explained I was doing as I had always done, rewarding the behavior I approved of and not the behavior I disapproved of. Mind you it also touched a nerve with me in that it was quite common for people to come in the shop and have a demonstration of a camera or lens and then then purchased the item cheaper on line. Nothing wrong with that as long as you are aware of the long term implications, there is nowhere it my town you can get a demonstration on a camera now as all the specialist camera shops have closed down.
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All closed down. Yes, I can see that. And thew people responsible don't realize they are the reason. Sad for all.
 
Hornet3d

Hornet3d

Wise
Ken1171 said:
I guess that fits this thread's title. In Japan, the arrival of large American chain stores (Like Walmart) was the beginning of the end for some traditional businesses in Japan. For instance, the Japanese used to buy liquor from small family-owned liquor stores for centuries, like a tradition. There was no other reason than tradition. Liquor was sold in fancy handcrafted packages that identified which house it was coming from, and tended to be more expensive. With the advent of Walmart, these kind of traditional, ancient practices have gradually disappeared from Japan, along with the family businesses that carried them on over the centuries. The fact that Japan has been under a 30 years recession has also pushed people to seek for cheaper alternatives. That has been especially tough on the Japanese because they were coming from a 400 years period of being closed to the outside world, where nowadays, some have wished it had remained as such. They didn't want things to change, but globalization makes that inevitable.
Click to expand...
Terre said:
All closed down. Yes, I can see that. And thew people responsible don't realize they are the reason. Sad for all.
Click to expand...


There are some trends that are just a matter of progress and a result in a change in circumstances. It is quite natural that there has been an increase in Internet shopping considering the situation with Covid 19 and really all that did was accelerated a trend that was already well underway. There is now pressure here in the UK to support the retail sector which has been badly hit but if handouts are to be given we need to have some control over how it is used, giving money to a business that was already failing is a waste unless the money is used to change something to make it profitable.

Other trends are a result of buying practices that are short sighted at best. In the camera shop where I worked we had two camera specialists, one a young girl who did photography at university and someone for whom photography had been a hobby for well over twenty years. Such knowledge does not come cheap so it is really no surprise that any camera is cheaper online if they are not paying for bricks and mortar or skilled staff. Nor it is a surprise when photographic shops shut down when they are paying good money to staff who cannot sell cameras because of buying trends.

It is not just the buying experience that suffers either, on one occasion I had a very angry gentleman in the shop complaining that the lens on his new camera was faulty. I waited until he had finished letting of steam and looked at the camera, the lens would probably have worked alright but I had to agree the movement of the focusing ring was not what I would expect for a brand new lens. As a result I swapped the lens for a brand new boxed lens which he checked was to his satisfaction and walked away a happy man with a new lens, a lens hood and a UV filter to protect the front of the lens, the last two items given free to try and make up for his trouble. Try doing that over the Internet.
 
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