Main Street Blog

1. List the criteria Robert Gibbs uses to evaluate a Main Street.
-Shop windows and signs should always be visible, not blocked by benches, tables, plants, or anything that would obstruct someone's view.
-Things like expensive street lamps and glamorous sidewalk decorations are visually appealing, but more likely than not people will spend more time looking at those sorts of things than the storefronts.
-Benches and tables should never be placed too close together because 1) they attract large groups of people and 2) they get overcrowded easily, especially if they are in a confined space. It is not likely that potential buyers will want to cross through a crowd of teenagers just for one store.
-Streets, sidewalks, and parking lots should always be clean so as not to detract anyone from going into a store or even entering the shopping center. A dirty, unkempt mall often reminds people of crime, which is surely to keep people from shopping. Sufficient lighting and a security presence are ways to eliminate queasy feelings and make people feel safe.
-Shopping centers should be located so that people will have to make left turns to access them. People won't turn into a mall if it means crossing traffic, and usually people shop on their way home from work so shopping centers should be located on the work bound side of the main road.
-Making people want to shop and making them feel comfortable in a certain place begins in the parking lot because that is the first place they go. That means making sure the lots are neat, clean, brightly lit, and full of greenery.
-Usually when people enter a mall, they travel counterclockwise, driving on the right side of the street. Therefore it's wise to make sure that nothing is obstructing the view to the right. It's crucial to keep someone's eye on the storefronts at all times, which is why it's important to steer away from straight roads and instead have roads that twist and turn.
-Clothing stores should never be located next to a restaurant because the smell of food may prevent sales. Clothing displays should never be located on the north side of the street because the sun coming from the south will fade the colors of the clothes.
-Gibbs says that a store only has 8 seconds to catch someone's attention who is walking past their storefront because that's how long (on average) it takes someone to walk past a store's display. That time range decreases drastically when someone is driving.
-Stores should always display what brands they carry because it can make a different in someone entering or not. Brands are what give stores credibility, Gibbs says, so it's important to show the public what you carry.

2. Think critically of Gibbs' argument. Do you think "Main Street" should be a mall?
Gibbs has a good argumet about Main Street. The stores are unassembled, and they will never be a unified place like a mall. People like the comfort of knowing that they have everything they could want in one place, without have to walk outside and across the street to get to another store. Places like main street still prosper because of their history. Maybe, eventually, those "mom and pop" stores Gibbs talks about that prosper in the large mall setting, will someday win against the downtown stores of a Main Street. But I don't think that will be anytime soon.

3. Make your own checklist to judge a Main Street. What things do you think are important?
-cleanliness
-visibility, no storefront obstructions
-well spaced out benches and tables to prevent large crowds and clumps of people
-security guards, or some form of security, should be visibly present so people will feel safe. If people don't feel safe, they won't shop. Also, lighting.
-no distracting odors coming from nearby restaurants because they distract customers and possibly prevent sales.
-signs should give off the right image from the start, that includes making sure the customer knows what brands you sell.