The big box chain has long been the ire of community members who worry about the place they live losing its local character. It’s a familiar story in our capitalist society and even on the big screen — most everyone recalls Meg Ryan duking it out with Tom Hanks in the 1998 Nora Ephron film “You’ve Got Mail.” A big bookstore chain owned by Joe Fox (Hanks) moves in across the street from a local indie book shop operated by Kathleen Kelly (Ryan). Spoiler alert if you’ve never seen the movie: Kelly’s The Shop Around the Corner closes in the end.
Similar fears were stirred up in Madison recently when a local shopper took to reddit to share their reaction to seeing a “Small But Mighty” sign at Hilldale, an outdoor shopping center on Madison’s westside.
“I couldn’t help but note the irony of this sign at Hilldale mall, even as they lease space in the newly-built stores (replacing the theater) to Sweetgreen and Warby Parker, direct competitors to longtime tenants Forage Kitchen and Ulla Eyewear,” the user wrote.