The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Flin Flon and area prides itself on being different from the big city. After all, we know who are neighbours are. We needn't endure rush hour traffic. And crimes so commonplace in large communities are always front-page news to us. But all of that is only part of the equation. In at least one aspect Ð shopping habits Ð we are becoming more like the Winnipegs and Saskatoons of the world. Ownership of Creighton's Pennywise Foods has announced the store will close due to dwindling sales and a tempting business opportunity elsewhere. It's a sign of the times that the neighbourhood store isn't as appealing or necessary as it once was. In the era of big box outlets, the neighbourhood store is being pushed aside. We no longer have to stop off at the convenience store for our newspapers or visit the corner grocer for bread. We can simply hop in our cars and within minutes have access to a big city selection no one here thought possible just a few short years ago. Loyalties to a single store, for better or worse, are often forgotten in the excitement. We want what's cheapest and most convenient. Strictly speaking, you'd have to call that progress. All retailers strive to please the customer, and if big box stores weren't getting the job done, they wouldn't be so busy. Nothing against big box stores Ð they are great places to shop Ð but there's a price to be paid for that progress. Neighbourhood stores across the continent have been finding that out firsthand. A neighbourhood store is part of what makes a community special. It's where we've known the cashiers for as long as we can remember. It's where we parked our bikes as children before eagerly buying penny candy with our allowance. It's where small talk can be heard in the aisles rather than the rattle of shopping carts speeding by as their operators try to snag a good place in line. Neighbourhood stores are much more than just another place we do business. To lose one is to lose a part of our identity. So it's no surprise that so many residents are sad to see Pennywise Foods go. It's not the first neighbourhood store we've lost, and it may not be the last. I guess we just have to take the good with the bad. Local Angle runs Fridays.
