Shopping in the 60s

So how has shopping changed since the 'sixties? In those days, people did most of their shopping on Friday evening and Saturday morning. Food shopping was a weekly event. Most shopping was done on Friday at the supermarket. Saturday was for fruit, vegetables and other perishables. Friday was often the only late night opening for the supermarkets and Friday was also pay-day. The supermarket itself was a fairly new innovation. Most people used one for the first time in the 'fifties.

In November 1969, the Consumers' Association ("Which?") produced a report about shopping habits and people's views on change. In those days it was assumed that only women did shopping and so only women were interviewed. The report's author dismissed suggestions that very soon everyone would have a freezer and shop once a month. Now everyone has a freezer, but we still seem to shop more frequently. They also made light of predictions that every housewife would soon have a car.

The report found that most women viewed the weekly shop as a job to get over with as efficiently as possible. They preferred to visit the same shops each week and preferred the layout to stay the same. The biggest hate was queuing at checkout points. Supermarkets were thought to be better value for money and have a greater range of better quality goods. Only older people preferred the personal service of smaller shops.

In spite of this, most of those interviewed did view shopping as a social event. They liked to meet friends at the shopping centre and stop for coffee. Shopping for clothes and other items, such as furniture and electrical goods, was less routine. The housewives liked to have their husbands present when shopping for furniture, but preferred female company when shopping for clothes.

People wanted more traffic-free shopping areas. They were a novelty in the 'sixties. They liked a cover over the pavement outside the shops, but did not want totally covered in areas like the shopping centres of today. One innovation that was welcomed was the provision of childcare whilst parents were shopping. Two of the New Towns had crèches.  A company called "Rentaplay" was charging 2s 6d per hour to look after children. Telephone boxes were generally provided in shopping centres - people wanted more of them. Parking was a problem in some town centres, although not in the New Towns.  The problem was partially solved by multi-storey car parks, although they were not well liked. Parents of small children had difficulties with the stairs. Lifts did not seem to be common.

As for out-of-town centres - they did not exist - and they were not wanted. Most people said they would have preferred to struggle to park in town than go to an out-of-town centre!

Generally, people were happy with the supermarkets and the way things were in the 'sixties. Clearly, they were wrong about out-of-town centres - but then if you have not tried something, how do you know?

Shopping centres and precincts

There was a tremendous amount of town centre building and re-developing in the 'fifties, which continued into the 'sixties. Bombing raids in the War had destroyed some town centres. Hitler's bombs particularly savaged Coventry and Plymouth. In the 'fifties, the centre of Coventry was rebuilt to a plan drawn up in wartime.

Architects of the time were very influenced by the Modern Movement. Modernism had been pioneered in the first half of the twentieth century by Le Corbusier (which means "the crow" - because he was far-sighted - like a crows' nest on a ship). Le Corbusier's book "Towards a New Architecture", first published in 1923, was a great influence for many years. He was influenced by both ancient Greece and Rome, by current designs for aircraft and cars, and by the work of civil engineers. Modernist ideas were taught and promoted by the Bauhaus School of Art and Design in Germany, which flourished in the pre-Nazi era. One of its teachers, Mies Van de Rohe, went on to design steel and glass skyscrapers in the United States after the War. His design for the German Pavilion at the Barcelona Exhibition in 1929 had the appearance of a light roof floating on glass. It set the scene for Modernism for the next forty years.

The style of the Modern Movement became known as the International Style. It is characterised by flat roofs and the use of wide, large, glass plate windows, steel frames and concrete. It was based on the idea that "form follows function", ie: the shape and appearance of a building should be derived from its use and "truth to the materials", ie: if it is made of concrete, it should look like concrete. (Paradoxically some buildings in the 'thirties were made of brick and rendered with cement so that they looked like concrete - more modern!). Finishes were plain with no unnecessary decoration. Any kind of ornament was considered a sin. This meant that the design had to be good - and for the most part, it was. It also meant that it was possible to have a top class building at a cheaper price.

In the 'fifties and 'sixties, modern town centre design followed these principles. There were large open areas, light and space, and the buildings were modern and forward looking. Coventry in the 'fifties was a good example.

Unfortunately, Modernism had a bad press in the 'eighties - one of its worst critics being HRH Prince Charles.  The result was a swing back to decoration and a revival of historical styles. The result for existing town centres built in a modern style was neglect, vandalism and unsympathetic "updating".

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