Nowadays, small shops are being replaced by large shopping complexes. While this trend entails certain advantages, I generally view this development negatively because of the harm to the environment as well as consumerism.
One potential benefit of the substitution of small stores with big shopping malls would be a wider range of products that big malls can offer. This is because individuals will have more choices when it comes to purchasing a particular type of item. For example, people can find one item in various colors, designs, styles, and sizes without looking for another item. People, as a result, can be more satisfied not only with a great deal of products but also with big shopping centers themselves.
Nonetheless, I still think that reconstructing small markets to build shopping malls is a negative development. One major drawback of this trend is that it can trigger a detrimental impact on the environment. As more and more large retail centers are built around the world, they cause severe issues, including increased air pollution and waste generation. They indeed attract a lot of cars, which ultimately leads to more fumes. Also, malls produce massive amounts of plastic packaging and food waste. From this perspective, the environment may become filthy and contaminated in recent years.
Another widely recognized downside is consumerism. Big malls, naturally, attract a majority of people who can overspend on the things that they do not really need. This often means that people might be astonished by the variety of items at a glance and this can incentivize them to purchase a lot of unnecessary stuff.
In conclusion, although there are positive aspects of replacing small stores with large retail centers, such as a huge diversity of essentials, it is still a negative development due to the side effects of large shopping malls on the environment along with the excessive spending of shoppers.