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5.22.07

Western-Style Supermarkets Threaten Traditional Indian Vendors

Local markets where Indians—and many travelers—have traditionally purchased their food staples are losing about 40 percent of their business to Western-style supermarkets, according to a BBC story. And that’s before Wal-Mart and Tesco move in with markets of their own next year.

"Change is simply part of the human condition,” Preeti Aroon writes about the developments at Foreign Policy’s Passport blog. “Cars put horse-cart makers out of business. Now, Indian IT workers get U.S. jobs that have been outsourced, and use their earnings to put their fellow Indian vegetable sellers out of business. Shift happens. But today change seems to occur at an ever faster, dizzying pace—not over generations, but within lifetimes. Perhaps it is occurring too fast, but no one seems to know how to put on the brakes.”

Photo by Meanest Indian via Flickr, (Creative Commons).

Posted by Michael Yessis • 5.22.07
Categories: Weblog • Food: The Moveable Feast • Global Village • India

Permalink • Comments (3)

COMMENTS

That’s India! I don’t think that it’s possible to extrude these people from the streets…

By Anna on 5.23.07 at 06:34 AM

It’s not just about business, it impacts the way traditional Indian soceity is centered around neighbourhood vendors, eventually connecting to their places from the familiarity that develops between the vendors and their regular neighbourhood customers long after the latter have shifted elsewhere.

By Anil on 9.14.07 at 08:17 AM

I agree with Anna and Anil. Vegetable sellers are a part of the middle class society, a force to reckon with. The I T people are only 2 percent of a society where I live in. The middle class living in colonies away from the city depend solely upon the vendors who serve them at their doorstep. Relationship develop over a period of time. Marriage and housewarming ceremony invitations are exchanged by the seller and buyer. The evegtable vendors children go to English medium convent school.As they learn from the society that eduction is a must and guided by their customers. This interaction is amazing.

By on 5.23.08 at 11:56 PM