Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1902-08-09
INTERNATIONAL SHOPPING.
Differences Between British and
American Stores.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Our
System.

very necessary it is to shop" and
how large a portion Of a woman's life
is spent in this pursuit, a few hints
for the guidance of foreigners would
not be amiss.
OF the many towns in which I have
shopped, New York has been TO me the
most curious and interesting, es-
peciaIly in comparison with London.
I have spent many hours exploring the
various stores of New York, and adding
to my fund Of what school curriculum
describes as general knowledge" In
visiting a foreign-speaking country,
one somehow expects to find con-
siderable differences, the very names
of things are not the same, but in COM
ing to America, where the English
language, with slight notifications and
infections, is spoken, one feels dis
tinctly surprised and aggrieved at
having to learn the art of shopping all
over again. l do not feel that I have
at all mastered the subject, but perhaps
a slight sketch of my experiences and
impressions of New York shopping
may by chance fall in the hands of one
Of my countrywomen just landing
from the steamer, and be of some ser
vice to her. Also Americans who have
not visited London may be amused to
hear of some ways of shopping other
than that of New York.
/ had been told previous to arriving
that New Workers do not cultivate the
habit Of walking about the city, but
jump on a car every time they need to
go a few blocks. This / decided in my
= a 1auinnGG with
high moral rectitude told myself that I
would not indulge in cars. But after
walking around many blocks on the
hot pavement, the zest with which l
started tagged considerably, and it
was indeed a miserable object that
reached home after a comparatively
small amount Of shopping-at least,
the result was small. But l had learned
one lesson which there is no danger of
my forgetting. ! now swear by the
cars In London one can walk quite q
long distance without being tired and
footsore. for the sun is but seldom
sufficiently hot to cause one any incon-
venience. Even in cool weather [ find
the pavement of New York much more
firing than that of London.
on my first day in New York as I
was requiring q good many small arti-
cIes of a varied nature, I was directed
to what L have since found to be one of
the largest stores in New York. Now,
the expression store" as used in New
York means quite a different thing in
London There are only four or five
stores in London-that is, houses that
sell all descriptions of goods, from pins
To ut those houses
one generally has to be a subscriber
that is, pay a small sum yearly for the
privilege of dealing there. They also
have a system by which you can open
n deposit account, which most people
do An American who might walk
into one of these stores would no doubt
be puzzled when the shopman asked for
his ticket number. Each subscriber is
given a number on joining, and is ex-
pected to carry around with him 4
number sometimes running into five
figures. This is firing on a hot day.
All establishments, other than these
stores, we call shops.
The store. which after many adj
ventures 1 succeeded in finding, is in
size very much larger than anything
we have in London, looking much more
like a wholesale warehouse than re-
tail shop. On entering the door I at
once found myself in an immense
room; my eyes travelling over what
seemed to me miles Of counters, ranged
along and across the room in endless
profusion. l looked around. Which
one of all those counters was the one
wanted? Should 1 turn to the right
or left or keep straight ahead?
wished ardently for a map, with all
the little lanes and turnings marked
thereon. The stations on the road
would be the names of the various
counters, ana the shortest route to any
counter might be easily determined
upon. l had never been confronted by
this difficulty in London for two rea-
sons. In the first place, our largest es-
adjustments are nearly always col
lection of separate shops, added one by
one as trade increases and connected
with one another internally. so that each
department on the ground floor has
separate entrance from the street. The
buildings are only a few stories high,
but have as a rule q large frontage.
Even when a large building is es-
pecially erected for any firm. this sys-
tenn is still carried out, the goods ais
played in the windows around the door
ways indicating the nature of the de-
partment. Then, in the second place.
on crossing the doormat, one is i'm
mediately aceosted by a 'shopwalker,"
called in America a "floorwalker." He
is n man who oversees the department,
signs bills, settles all disputes and APP
peals. This man will place a chair for
you at the counter you require, and if,
after making a purchase there, you
wish to visit another department, will
himself conduct you thither.
This l discovered was not the system
of the New York store. l waited some
minutes for the shopwalker. but none
came. and finally l started out on
voyage of discovery. 1t was a Satur
day afternoon and the shop was crowd
ed with people, rushing here and there
with no regard for those who stood in
their way. 1 asked one of the young
girls behind one of the less popular
counters for the whereabouts of the
goods for which 1 was looking. She
gave a casual nod of her head in one
direction, saying, over there" i
was a long time finding the over