In recent years, many small local shops have closed because customers travel to large shopping centers or malls to do their shopping. Is this a positive or a negative development? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. v.13

As the population of the world is growing manifold each year, a large number of citizens prefer easy and comprehensive shopping rather than the old school local vendors. In my view, this is a positive development due to the numerous advantages offered by malls. Firstly, a large shopping complex offers a variety of options in terms of product range to the consumers who can not only choose, but compare the various aspects across various manufacturers. In fact, products like clothing, electronic gadgets, kitchenware and makeup accessories, are all available in abundance with multiple options, designs, colours and brands. Since everything is available under a single roof, a person doesn’t have to hop from one location to another in order to buy different product categories. For instance, in Delhi, Kamla Nagar market has an array of big and small shops selling a variety of goods. It used to be a favourite among the masses during festivals like Diwali and Rakshabandhan but with the onset of shopping centres like the DLF Mall Of India and Select Citywalk, it is not so frequently visited since consumers have now resorted to flexible and convenient options due to lack of time and space. Therefore, shopping centres have marked the beginning of comfortable shopping. Secondly, the major issue of parking has been resolved with these shopping arcades coming into picture. For example, earlier, when local vendors used to operate, pupils used to park their cars alongside roads, leading to bottleneck jams and road rage. They were also worried about the safety of their vehicle while shopping due to the fear of getting it towed away by local authorities. This issue has been solved now since all the vehicles are parked in an underground basement where there are security personnel who are looking after them. Thus, shopping areas have brought another major convenience to people by providing huge parking space for a hassle free experience. To conclude, shopping malls have facilitated a smoother shopping experience than smaller vendors by stocking all items under one roof and eliminating the parking woes.