We all love a good independent shop. Those eccentricities that chain stores just can’t deliver; quirky owners with a story to tell; hand-picked goods full of character and charm. But where are they all going?

 

Now, take Banstead – an amiable suburban town in Surrey, populated by a mix of young and old. To picture a place, so perfect for a gaggle of independent stores is to picture Banstead. But, it would seem in recent years, a plague has spread across the high street, killing all small businesses and eateries within the first couple of months, in turn prolonging the lives of franchise royalty Café Nero and The Lemon Tree. While these are thriving, and justly so, it’s the little places that suffer, forced, with no other choice, to shut up shop. Are people getting too used to factory-made comfort? Is the fever of knowing what you are going to get before you get it taking the surprise and wonder out of village sovereign shopping?

 

Well I think so. Brands are taking over the world and fast. If an H&M were to open opposite Waitrose tomorrow, it can be guaranteed to stand the test of time, reeling in customers for decades, if not centuries, to come. As a society, we have become too planned, too manufactured, nabbing the Kipling lemon slice without a second thought to the homemade Eccles cake. But is that what we want to be? Followers of the crowd? Sheep in the herd?

 

In the last couple of months, Banstead has bid farewell to one of its most treasured establishments, a closure of such public outrage it made the Telegraph and BBC News (a strong feat for any event in Surrey). The Ibis Bookshop opened in 1938 and was said to be one of the country’s oldest book retailers, surviving the rise and fall of Hitler, but not the war against Amazon. Viewed by residents as a ‘local landmark’, owners were forced to shut down after online shops stole their once brimming custom. Let’s face the facts: people would much rather browse and buy in the comfort of their Ikea armchair than take a stroll to the high street and exercise their vocal chords. Or is it the issue of time? Time is money, after all.

 

It would seem this age of Wi-Fi wizardry is pushing one step too far. Ibis is only one of the countless tragedies to leave a hole in the flesh of Banstead’s beating heart. This clotted mess would be frowned upon by generations passed but, well, the Internet is wonderful, isn’t it?

 

Isn’t it? 

 

Imogen Bristow

Wallington High School for Girls