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The Dengler Domain: Five and Dime

Going to the local five and dime would have been a wonderful experience. Unfortunately, I grew up in a world where large corporations like Wal-Mart and Target control the “We have everything you can think of” market. These businesses destroyed the local general store and the experience of going to the local store. This is an experience I would have participated in a lot in small town Iowa.

One reason visiting the local five and dime would be a great experience is the atmosphere. A local store’s atmosphere in a small town community is one unlike a big box store. The atmosphere of the local five and dime is friendly and helpful compared to the cold, frigid walls of a big box store. Helping out a local business owner by purchasing items from their store is a better feeling than feeding into the big box store’s system. The local five and dime provides a chance to buy from a person who I trust and wants the best for me.

Another reason I wish could have experienced a five and dime store is the ease of access. With the close proximity of the local general store, there is no need to plan a whole afternoon out. Driving to larger cities for the big box stores is a long day especially when multiple stops are needed. Small towns provide globs of parking unlike figuring out what lane I parked my car in at Wal-Mart. Less traffic is another wonderful part of going to the local five and dime compared to the busy streets of the big cities. This dramatically reduces the stress level of the driver and the time of this process.

The next reason the local five and dime would have been a wonderful experience is the architecture of the building. Local general stores were the exact opposite of the big warehouses of big box stores. The five and dimes were a part of the downtown or not built with the big box store tackiness. While big box stores cram as many products in their walls, the old architecture of five and dimes added character. The architecture links back to older, simpler times. The building itself is a selling point to the customer.

The atmosphere, ease of access and architecture are great reasons why visiting a five and dime store would have been fun. If five and dimes were financially viable, I would enjoy driving to a closer, smaller town to find everything I need for a low, low price. These general stores would add essence to Traer, Dysart and Clutier, and this would make these communities stronger. These stores have the wonderful ability to make the world smaller, but unfortunately, this is not economically viable. This means until a time traveling device is invented, I will yearn for this part of the past.

Email Sean with your thoughts and ideas for future columns at: sean.h.dengler@gmail.com

The Dengler Domain: Five and Dime

Going to the local five and dime would have been a wonderful experience. Unfortunately, I grew up in a world where large corporations like Wal-Mart and Target control the “We have everything you can think of” market. These businesses destroyed the local general store and the experience of going to the local store. This is an experience I would have participated in a lot in small town Iowa.

One reason visiting the local five and dime would be a great experience is the atmosphere. A local store’s atmosphere in a small town community is one unlike a big box store. The atmosphere of the local five and dime is friendly and helpful compared to the cold, frigid walls of a big box store. Helping out a local business owner by purchasing items from their store is a better feeling than feeding into the big box store’s system. The local five and dime provides a chance to buy from a person who I trust and wants the best for me.

Another reason I wish could have experienced a five and dime store is the ease of access. With the close proximity of the local general store, there is no need to plan a whole afternoon out. Driving to larger cities for the big box stores is a long day especially when multiple stops are needed. Small towns provide globs of parking unlike figuring out what lane I parked my car in at Wal-Mart. Less traffic is another wonderful part of going to the local five and dime compared to the busy streets of the big cities. This dramatically reduces the stress level of the driver and the time of this process.

The next reason the local five and dime would have been a wonderful experience is the architecture of the building. Local general stores were the exact opposite of the big warehouses of big box stores. The five and dimes were a part of the downtown or not built with the big box store tackiness. While big box stores cram as many products in their walls, the old architecture of five and dimes added character. The architecture links back to older, simpler times. The building itself is a selling point to the customer.

The atmosphere, ease of access and architecture are great reasons why visiting a five and dime store would have been fun. If five and dimes were financially viable, I would enjoy driving to a closer, smaller town to find everything I need for a low, low price. These general stores would add essence to Traer, Dysart and Clutier, and this would make these communities stronger. These stores have the wonderful ability to make the world smaller, but unfortunately, this is not economically viable. This means until a time traveling device is invented, I will yearn for this part of the past.

Email Sean with your thoughts and ideas for future columns at: sean.h.dengler@gmail.com