I picked a supermarket because I think it has a very dynamic set of clients and a diverse set of needs that it has to fulfill. As a necessity in almost every single person’s life the supermarket is quite often a stop on the way home from work to do grocery shopping for the week, a quick trip for a kid after school to get a snack, and even a place for someone to wander if they just need some place dry or cool to walk around for a bit.
The concentric zone model discussed in class had 5 specific areas, or “zones,” that any given city is made up of (generally). I have made an illustration to show these zones.
According to this model I think its is important that the location be accessible to many people without being located in the heart of the city’s core where traffic tends to be thicker and more congested. If I were to locate in the heart of the city I think that I would exclude a lot of people in zone 4 that maybe do not work of do not commute to the city very often. Therefore, according to this model, I think the ideal place to locate would be in zone 3 with the “skilled workers” toward zone 4 with the “higher-end housing.” I think as a one-store operation this would generate the most revenue. I do not see an advantage of being closer to zone 2 due to safety issues. I would probably gear my store more toward the working-class families.
In our “Urban Experience” reading by Bluestone, Stevenson, and Williams there were 5 economic concepts for underlying urban growth discussed. They were as follows:
1- Trade and transportation
2- Agglomeration economies
3- Internal economies of scale
4- Consumer markets
5- Technological progress
I found these important to how I decided where to develop because they would all play an important role in how my grocery store integrated into the existing community (assuming I was building in an already-developed area). I would be relying a lot on the people who lived outside of the city and commuted to their job. Because of my location I would get a lot of people doing after-work shopping and possibly people who do not work during the day and who would do afternoon grocery shopping. I would also be reliant upon city transportation for people who do not live within walking distance- key factors in deciding where to locate. As I mentioned earlier I am assuming that I have no competition so I did not think that agglomeration had much influence on my decision. If I were the only supermarket I would be able to allow for shipments to come in from many different places without worrying about my competitors spending less on their shipping costs. The central place theory in the reading (under the “Internal Economies of Scale” section) supports my decision to locate in zone three because I am not dependant on a large population of people like the libraries, museums, and sports stadiums are. My superstore would be more of a necessity than an optional commodity. I did not see anything relevant to my location in the “Consumer Market” section. The last section about technological progress mainly discusses how some crafts and trades can be done out of a home environment but when I need for technology increases the need for space generally increases as well thus supporting my decision to locate in zone three where there is generally more space than in the consolidated city core.This class has really opened up my mind to issues that I was not previously aware of. I am excited to learn the next lesson and apply it to the cities that I encounter in my life.
