Last updated at 13:41, Thursday, 12 January 2012

I’ve seen the future of shopping and it is like going to Argos. Hundreds of us queuing in giant warehouses clutching ticket number 14682934870 and waiting impatiently in line for a sliced loaf, half a dozen eggs, tins of beans, a packet of spaghetti, a new toaster, bottle of wine and back-to-school uniforms for the kids.

We will all make our weekly orders online and turn up at a collection depot on a windswept business park to pick it up.

We probably won’t even get a ticket. We’ll have an order number or a special app or debit card to swipe, which will trigger a series of microchip blips and our orders will pop out of some giant vending machine-thingy.

Because this will be the cheapest and easiest way to buy things.

We do this now, with Argos and other companies where you order online, then pick up the goods at a nearby store.

John Lewis, Next and Debenhams already operate successful versions.

With Amazon orders, they’re delivered from massive warehouses. But surely it would be cheaper for the customer to pick up their items, rather than pay for delivery?

How did we end up like this?

More and more of our High Street businesses are ailing and disappearing.

HMV, Blacks, and La Senza are just the latest big-name nationals to get into trouble, following household names like C&A and Woolworths.

Now some businesses are not run properly. Some are completely misguided or inappropriate.

Some fail to keep up with trends, developments and competition.

One way or another these businesses will fail and perhaps deservedly so. But it is us shoppers who are the ultimate authors of their downfall.

It’s us voting with our wallets, purses, feet and internet connections who hit their takings, forcing their closure.

Many high streets and the people who work there are being hit by the casual indifference and thoughtlessness of bargain hunters.

We’re all chasing more and better bargains and shopping online to cut out the middle-man.

It’s only human nature – we’re after as much as we can get for the least amount of money, especially in these cash-strapped recessionary times.

But if we do this, we can’t complain about growing unemployment and the closure of shops in our towns.

We can’t moan about how depressing it is to go shopping.

One way of trying to counteract my grim vision of the future is for us to agree to pay what we think is a fair price for what we want and the service we get.

For us to have any sort of a viable town or city centre and a social, sociable shopping experience, we have to pay a bit more.

There’s no guarantee that this will actually work, but it might mean our town and city centres retain some life, some appeal and some reason for existing just a little bit longer.

I don’t live in a cave, I’m not against progress and innovation, far from it.

I just like the idea of human connection and social interaction.

It’s the old cliche, I’m afraid: use it or lose it.

There was a perfect example of the benefits of visiting a shop this week when I went to Staples in Carlisle.

The staff there were patient and extremely helpful. They helped me out of a serious jam and didn’t ask for a penny for their time and help.

As a result, I’m now likely to go there as a first port of call, rather than a last resort – and to recommend it to others.

A big thank you to general manager James and his staff.

First published at 11:27, Thursday, 12 January 2012
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk