Shopping and Services Essay

Shopping and Services Essay

Shopping is an activity that is enjoyed by many people. There are also some people who hate shopping and say that it is a waste of time. But weather they like it or not, they sooner or later have to go to a shop to buy what they need.

There are many types of shops from large ones such as hypermarkets, supermarkets, shopping centres, large department stores to small specialized shops like bakers, butchers, chemists, bookshops, boutiques, etc. and outdoor markets.

Supermarkets (Billa) are big shops which mostly sell food and standard toilet items. There are situated in cities and towns and some of them have parking spaces.

Hypermarkets (Tesco) or superstores are on a larger scale and usually situated outside a town, where there is a space for a large car park. People can buy almost anything there; from small things like milk through to clothes, shoes, cameras, to big items such as TVs, computers and furniture. One of the positive things about hypermarkets is that they are able to offer lower prices. They also sell their own brand products which are usually cheaper. Also, we don’t have to carry heavy bags we can place them in a trolley and unload them directly into the boot of our car, a few meters away.

Department stores are large buildings usually several storeys high. They have many departments which offer their customers lots of high quality goods from different companies. There are also cafes, snack bars and restaurants where the people can relax when they are tired of shopping. These stores are usually run by one company and the famous ones in Europe are Harrods and Selfridges (both in London).

A shopping centre (Pollus) is a planned complex of smaller shops used by many companies which rent departments and sell different products.

A shopping mall is the same as a shopping centre but enclosed (indoor) and much larger with the biggest ones on the edges of towns.

Nowadays, more and more people prefer shopping in supermarkets and stores, because it’s very convenient to have so many products under one roof and obviously it does save a lot of time.

No matter how good supermarkets and stores are, there are still people who prefer shopping in small specialized shops. These types of shops are often visited by older people (without car), children and those who have forgotten to buy something in supermarkets.

At the grocers people can buy food items including fruit, vegetables, flour, sugar, salt, eggs, vegetable oil, tea and coffee, bottled beer and juice, sweets, chocolates. There are also dairy products such as milk, butter, cream, cheese and yogurts. At the bakers various kinds of fresh bread, rolls, buns and cakes can be bought. Thebutcher sells meat – pork, beef, lamb, poultry and also tinned and frozen meat and fish. Here we can buy smoked meat products such as ham, bacon and sausages. At thestationer’s writing paper, wrapping paper, envelopes, notebooks, pens, pencils, rubbers and rulers are sold. Chemists sell medicines and pills, florist’s flowers, newsagent’s newspapers, magazines, sweets, cigarettes and tobacco and greengrocer’s fresh fruit and vegetables.

Almost all cities and towns have an open-air market once or twice a week. The stall-holders sell flowers, fresh vegetables and fruit, but also the cheap or second-hand goods. They often come into the town from the countryside and start selling early in the morning, and finishing by mid-afternoon.

We as the customers or consumers require good quality products, for reasonable prices and also good service. Service is very important. When we enter the shop with a pleasant, smiling and helpful shop assistant, we are happy to buy something and come back again. At present we can pay cash, by bank check or use a credit card.