1. SOCI 2070 Shopping

2. Today’s Class 1. Shopping and Power 2. Revolutionizing the Means of Consumption 3. Towards a Sociology of Shopping

3. Today’s Readings Required Anne Kingston, The Edible Man: Dave Nichol, President’s Choice, and the Making of Popular Taste, pp. 51-66. Anne Kingston, The Edible Man: Dave Nichol, President’s Choice, and the Making of Popular Taste, pp. 51-66. Deborah Barndt, Tangled Routes: Women, Work, and Globalization on the Tomato Trail, 113-127. Deborah Barndt, Tangled Routes: Women, Work, and Globalization on the Tomato Trail, 113-127. Naomi Klein, No Logo, xiii-26; 439-446. Naomi Klein, No Logo, xiii-26; 439-446. Leanne Delap, ‘Fear, Froth and Sincerity: Where Do We Go From Here?’ Leanne Delap, ‘Fear, Froth and Sincerity: Where Do We Go From Here?’ Sophie Kinsella, Confessions of a Shopaholic, pp. 5- 11. Sophie Kinsella, Confessions of a Shopaholic, pp. 5- 11.Supplementary George Ritzer, Enchanting a Disenchanting World, Ch. 1, Ch. 4 (On Reserve) George Ritzer, Enchanting a Disenchanting World, Ch. 1, Ch. 4 (On Reserve)

4. The Means of Consumption We are “consumed with consumption” We are “consumed with consumption”RitzerSpaces Shopping malls Shopping malls Superstores Superstores Tourist sites (Disney) Tourist sites (Disney) Public institutions (York Lanes) Public institutions (York Lanes)Technologies Electronic retailers Electronic retailers Home shopping network Home shopping network

5. Cathedrals of Consumption “What was worshipped in these contemporary cathedrals…was not an absolute moral order but something much more mundane: people were ‘worshipping shopping’ and through it…the private authorities, the order and corporate power their worship makes possible” “What was worshipped in these contemporary cathedrals…was not an absolute moral order but something much more mundane: people were ‘worshipping shopping’ and through it…the private authorities, the order and corporate power their worship makes possible” Shearing and Stenning, p. 323 Sacred? Sacred? Or at least… Spectacular Spectacular Extraordinary Extraordinary Providing a ‘holistic’ shopping experience Providing a ‘holistic’ shopping experience

6. McDonaldized Shopping 1. The Efficiency of a Mall All shops in one location All shops in one location One stop shopping One stop shopping A large pool of customers A large pool of customers Promotion of a shopping culture Promotion of a shopping culture 2. Calculability Price Club, Sam’s Club Price Club, Sam’s Club Large stores with large piles of goods in large sizes Large stores with large piles of goods in large sizes Bigger is cheaper and better: Bigger is cheaper and better: Supersize my groceries Supersize my groceries

7. McDonaldized Shopping 3. Predictability Gap khakis: The Big Mac of pants Gap khakis: The Big Mac of pants Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy: The same from Yorkdale to West Edmonton Mall to 8 th & Broadway (NYC) Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy: The same from Yorkdale to West Edmonton Mall to 8 th & Broadway (NYC) 4. Control & Technology Stores designed to maximize the exposure to products (IKEA) Stores designed to maximize the exposure to products (IKEA) Computer technology to regulate inventory & collect customer data Computer technology to regulate inventory & collect customer data Surveillance technology to monitor shoppers’ behavior Surveillance technology to monitor shoppers’ behavior “The supermarket shopper is one of the most closely observed species alive” “The supermarket shopper is one of the most closely observed species alive” Kingston, Reading Kit, 458

8. McDonaldized Shopping The Shopper is McDonalidized Performs tasks formerly performed by workers Bag your own groceries Supervises workers The ‘goldfish bowl’

9. 5 th Element: Irrationality of Rationality Big Boxes and suburban sprawl Big Boxes and suburban sprawl Driving out small businesses Driving out small businesses Substitution of consumerism for meaningful activities Substitution of consumerism for meaningful activities The extraordinary becomes mundane The extraordinary becomes mundane

10. The Class System: Wage Labour Labour Competitiveness in the service economy Labour Competitiveness in the service economy Replacement of full-time with part-time labour Replacement of full-time with part-time labour Pressure for wage freezes and/or rollbacks Pressure for wage freezes and/or rollbacks Computerization and competitiveness lead to job loss, and/or workplace reorganization Computerization and competitiveness lead to job loss, and/or workplace reorganization Work intensification and management control Work intensification and management control

11. The Class System: Corporate Power Wal-Mart: annual sales that surpass the GDP of over 160 countries Wal-Mart: annual sales that surpass the GDP of over 160 countries Supermarkets in Canada Seven chains control 70% of the food retail market Seven chains control 70% of the food retail market Loblaws Companies Ltd. is dominant, controlling over 30% Loblaws Companies Ltd. is dominant, controlling over 30%

12. Commodity Fetishism “…the habit of perceiving an object’s price as something intrinsic to and fixed within that object, something emanating directly and vitally from that object’s core, rather than as the end result of a history of people and their labour” Leah Hagar Cohen, Reading Kit, p. 306

13. Branding as Commodity Fetishism Create a core meaning/identity that transcends the product itself Create a core meaning/identity that transcends the product itself Attach ‘value’ to the brand/identity Attach ‘value’ to the brand/identity

14. Branding as Commodity Fetishism Purchase the lifestyle, set of values, attitude of the brand Purchase the lifestyle, set of values, attitude of the brand

15. Branding as Commodity Fetishism There is labour behind the label There is labour behind the label