[clb]

Yeah, I'd much rather pay $50 for a pair of pants, than $15. Those small town retailers really knew how to serve the customer. Of course, they wouldn't stock what you wanted, nor have anything at a reasonable price. But they were local.

Boulder, Colorado made a law that no big box stores could locate there. Well, they all went to Louisville, Lafayette, or Longmont. Now those cities get the sales tax revenue. And they created jobs that weren't there before at all. Those people moving in created other jobs and opportunity for other businesses.

Are you a "change is bad" type person? If a smaller retailer can't make it, well, I bet the owner is not starving and has found something else to do.