Vintage professions you'd like to see come back.....

[CharlieB]

Sort of an obscenely large general store.

Yes, simliar concept, but totally different execution!

I can't say too much bad because my son works for one. That doesn't mean I have to like them!

 

[rue]

I only go to Waly-world if I have to. I try to do all my shopping at our local mom and pop grocery, as well as other local merchants when available, to try and keep small businesses afloat and because it's so much friendlier. They actually know who I am and remember me :eeek: Imagine that! The weird thing is that I compared prices and most of the time it beats the big box chain [huh]

 

[Adcurium]

We have a milkman and he delivers everything from a gallon of milk to chocolate cakes. You can even manage your account online to add "extra's" around the holidays.

I also have a cobbler a few blocks from my office. The first time I went into the shop I expected to see either an 85 year old man or an elf (I'm joking about the elf, of course). Instead, a 40 year old man came out from the work area. I was really surprised. I'm willing to bet he took the business from his father. He put new soles on a pair of Cole-Haan shoes for 50 bucks. Saved me quite a bit of money.

How about the grocer? Supermarkets, convenience stores, but very few grovers, nowadays.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

We also need a place for the young people to congregate nowadays, such as a malt shop, or anything really that is nicer than our local hangout, the Wal-Mart parking lot.

 

[sheeplady]

Yeah, I never understood that either. Unless of course they have good insurance and the other working partner doesn't get insurance through their job.

Or if the spouse that stays home is worried that they will not be able to re-enter the workforce if they need to. I know a lot of women who have stayed in the workplace because they are afraid that they will not be able to support their family if something happens to their spouse (divorce, illness, loss of job, loss of hours) OR they wish to return to work after their children are a certain age. It is very difficult to re-enter the workplace for some people who have a significant career break- people often need to retrain and/or start at a much lower level than if they had worked at least part-time.

Some people also really like to work and for them the rewards of working beat out the costs.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

My ma went through this. My dad fell off a scaffold when I was 5 and my brother and sister were 2, forcing my ma to have to go back to work. She was doing a bottom rung job at Wisconsin Cheeseman. She did get lucky and early on they made her a mechanic once they found out her capabilities.

Or if the spouse that stays home is worried that they will not be able to re-enter the workforce if they need to. I know a lot of women who have stayed in the workplace because they are afraid that they will not be able to support their family if something happens to their spouse (divorce, illness, loss of job, loss of hours) OR they wish to return to work after their children are a certain age. It is very difficult to re-enter the workplace for some people who have a significant career break- people often need to retrain and/or start at a much lower level than if they had worked at least part-time.

Some people also really like to work and for them the rewards of working beat out the costs.

 

[pompsnpincurls]

You know what I miss the most? Granted it wasn't too long ago, but I miss the days when my friends and I, and other kids played outside everyday and rode our bikes constantly, and had to be forced to come inside at night. Nowadays it's all you can do to get them off the couch. I used to babysit for a family for a few years, and it almost seemed like it was a punishment when I took them to the park!

Good memories .

 

[Amy Jeanne]

In South jersey there is a butcher shop that is always crowded.

All gas stations in NJ are full-service. It's illegal to pump your own.

There was a "shoe repair" 2 miles down the road from me (in NJ) well into the early 2000s! (It's a Dunkin Donuts, now)

NJ diners offer good "hangouts" for young people and serve fresh, real milkshakes.

In Philly, there are two cobblers about 5 miles from here.

The "mom and pop" shops have this area all to themselves. My husband actually finds this annoying because they are all overpriced here.

 

[W-D Forties]

When I was a kid in Liverpool there was always a local shop my family referred to a the 'chandlers'. It wasn't a ship's chandlers, but it sold just about everything you could ever need. Dig hard enough and I think most areas still have a 'chandlers'. Theres one over the road from me and I have bought everything from fabric dye to paint, irons and even a plastic banana from them. They also sell paraffin and plants.

They never seem to be out of stock of anything and are actually cheaper than the big chain DIY shops.

 

[Blackjack]

Not a profession by any means [huh] but I miss the S&H Green Stamp Stores that were in the supermarkets when I was a kid.

 

[LizzieMaine]

When I was a kid in Liverpool there was always a local shop my family referred to a the 'chandlers'. It wasn't a ship's chandlers, but it sold just about everything you could ever need. Dig hard enough and I think most areas still have a 'chandlers'. Theres one over the road from me and I have bought everything from fabric dye to paint, irons and even a plastic banana from them. They also sell paraffin and plants.

They never seem to be out of stock of anything and are actually cheaper than the big chain DIY shops.

We still have places like that here:

 

[rue]

We still have places like that here:

That's hilarious Lizzie lol

 

[AtomicEraTom]

Hmmm, perhaps my dad's ideas of expanding his shop are a good idea haha. His slogan is "Your Friendly Local Machine Gun Dealer"

We still have places like that here:

 

[TJC]

Definitely a cobbler and a watch maker/horologist. I have an early 20th century Seiko pocket watch with sentimental value. I can't find anyone willing to touch it. Definitely a lost craft.

 

[ScionPI2005]

We still have places like that here:

With those things for sale, who could ask for anything more?

 

[Lincsong]

The Mexican's around here seem to be successful at turning old, run down markets around. I know a couple locations that were one failed business after another and now they're clean, well run operations.

 

[Jish1969]

I would love to see Buffalo's Broadway Market get better attention and funding to revitalize the place again. Not that it will ever reach the heights it did in its heyday, but even now its a place where you can get fresh meat including homemade Polish and Italian sausage, seafood, breads, pastries, even get your watch battery replaced, and much more. There is even a diner that has an Italian sausage and eggs breakfast to die for.. If you look at the link you see what it once was even when I was a kid in the 80's, and now you see it after its late 90's "beautification". I admit it is an improvement over what it had become in recent years, but mismanagement and poor funding are going to make this market a thing of the past soon.

http://broadwaymarket.org/

 

[CharlieB]

With those things for sale, who could ask for anything more?

Do you think there is a discount if you get all three?

 

[AtomicEraTom]

Another one you see going away is the old downtown pharmacies. We are losing another one here that has been in operation for years, the owner announced he is retiring on Tuesday and his children have no interest in keeping it going. Sad.

We also recently lost Rhymes Drug, and this lovely rotating sign has since been taken down.

 

[MissMittens]

Sad, Tom. Here in Dover we have a railcar diner in early 50's style, although they butchered the exterior horribly, and a mom+pop diner that still has the original 1947 signage. It's a shame. Every time I drive by an old building with vintage signs still attached, makes me want to save them somehow. SIgnage is a lost art