Large shops, little shops, and advertising

Chichester East Street in the 1970s.  It would have met with the approval of my great-aunt Gladys, as noted on the back by my father.  She judged the worth of a town purely and simply on whether or not it had a Marks and Spencer shop.   Apart from that, though, the street doesn't appear to have been overtaken by the large chains. Yet.  At the far end you can see the Market Cross or Chichester Cross.  (See also City Cross, High Cross, or Buttercross in Winchester)

Another card from the 1970s but this one shows the smaller shops that struggle against the might of the big chains on High Streets these days.  There is a movement to encourage small shops back but how successful that will be in these days of little time and not much more money, I really don't know. 

To see this pre-1902 postcard in more detail, you will need to click on the image.  It shows crowds of people waiting to get into Blackpool Central Pier to add to the crowds already there.  That much is probably visible without magnification, but the advertising is harder to see.  The signs are:

Bovril is King in the Kitchen
Sames Pianos
Mothers try Pritchard's Teething Powder
Kaputine for headache (safe, apparently)
Boots Cash Chemists

Well, Bovril and Boots are still around today and so is Central Pier, but it looks very different today.

Do visit Sepia Saturday and see how other people have interpreted (or not) the theme this week.