Arrival of Aldi has Opportunity, Drawbacks

A new semester has started at Oberlin College and with it has arrived a new addition to the Oberlin community. ALDI — with its strange deposit-based shopping carts and bulk produce — has set up shop right across the road from the Walmart in Oberlin. But does Oberlin need another big-box store? The trend of big-box stores worming their way into small towns has made it increasingly difficult for local businesses to stay afloat. Their tendency toward mass production and outsourcing labor to other countries allows them to keep their prices and wages low. General merchandise big-box stores are particularly detrimental to small businesses because they carry such a wide variety of products, whereas small businesses, such as hardware stores, bakeries, and stationery suppliers, generally serve a more niche clientele. To the stereotypically overworked and underpaid American, big-box stores have become an accepted and necessary evil, despite their reputation for lower-quality products and poor labor practices. The practice of big-box stores entering small towns and driving out local businesses is a recognizable phenomenon, one so common that we have seen it become its very own rom-com genre. The plot is typically anti-corporation despite the majority of these movies being […]

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