Anlan: Hello, everyone and welcome back to Britain under the Microscope advanced.
Lulu: Hello,
Anlan: So today, we are gonna be carrying on our episode about shopping in this advanced episode.
Lulu: En, there is a lot more that we can talk about. So last time we talked about some of the basics, some of the expressions. We've mentioned these whole ideas about the High Street. Can you just remind us what is the definition of "High Street", because that is a very English idea.
Anlan: The high street is the central road through any town. So if you think about most towns were built on the edge of major roads, the "High Street" is that road.
Lulu: So every town can have a High Street?
Anlan: Absolutely. So every town will have a "High Street", and that traditionally is being where the shops have been located.
Lulu：That why now there is the idea of High Street fashion, high street names. In the past 3 decades, how have the high streets been changing in the UK?
Anlan: Well, to be honest, it's not looking good for high streets in the UK. If you read the media, if you read the news, there is lots about the death of high streets.
Lulu：The death of high streets sounds really grim.
Anlan: Well it is, that's because many shops are going out of business. So for example, in past few years, we had shops like BHs and Woolworth going out of business.
Lulu：Oh, sometime you walk pass, some of these shops and, one day they were still shops, the next day you see liquidation that means they are going bankrupt, they are going belly-up.
Anlan: If you look BHs and Wools as example, those house-hold names that had been on the high streets for over 70 years, but they just gone into liquidation, they gone bankrupt.
Lulu：Why is that though?
Anlan: Well, there are lots of different reasons. Lots of people say it's the effect of recession, so the 2008 credit crunch and also reliance on sales events. I remember when I was growing up, shops only used to have sales in the summer, and also around Christmas time and boxing day sales.
Lulu: Yes, that's usually sales season. And now they are having sales all the time.
Anlan: You can see these from the high streets as well. You mentioned about the shops that the shops are just no longer there. Many of them are being turned into Café, coffee shops or restaurants. So the high street is becoming more of a social area rather than a shopping area.
Lulu: What about the corner shops, like the little shops in the UK?
Anlan: Oh, the corner shops used to be very very common, they were mostly run by immigrant families who came over in the 1970s or 1980s, because they were willing to work such long hours. The corner shops were designed for those times that you just need some milk or bread, or you need a newspaper.
Lulu：They open till late.
Anlan: Well, they open till late and they are pretty much everywhere, but now they are becoming less common.
Lulu：Is it because they are more expensive?
Anlan: Pretty much. They are more expensive.
Lulu：There is not that much on selection.
Anlan: They don't have much on selections. And nowadays, if you go to the UK, you will see lots of our big supermarkets, like Tesco, Sainsbury，they all have their own express version.
Lulu：Oh, yes, I remember there was a Tesco local or Tesco Metro, quite close to us.
Anlan: Yes, very very close to train station, so the people just pick things up on the way back from work because nowadays, people don't have time to go the hypermarket, the really big supermarkets.
Lulu：That you have to drive to.
Anlan: Yes.
Lulu：So what are other possible causes are there for the death or the decline of the High Streets? I would think it's like transport as well, how people travel.
Anlan: Transport is an issue, Rents, the rising cost of land in the UK as well.
Lulu: Of course.
Anlan: And also rising of consumer's expectations. Before people were quite happy with much simpler products, but now they demand a lot more variety at a lower cost.

Lulu: Especially the younger generation. I remember going to all these conventional department stores in the UK, you mostly see a lot of older people, not so many young people.
Anlan: No. And of course another big influence is the internet and the new technology.
Lulu: The growth of the internet. You know that in China we have Alibaba, we have Taobao. We have Jingdong and all that, you personally shopped on these things. What about the online shopping in the UK? Is that as popular in the UK as in China?
Anlan: It is popular. But I wouldn't say it's as developed as it's in China. You can buy food from super markets online and that's becoming more common. But mostly people buy things online like books, or electronics, and things like that.
Lulu：You haven't moved to buying grocery online.
Anlan: We are heading to that direction. We are going towards that direction, but still often people generally like to get the food themselves.
Lulu： Is it because that generally British people are a little bit more reserved, when it comes to the new technology?
Anlan: Partly yes, but I also think in the UK we do like buy things online, it's only now we start to feel more comfortable with it, because that's issues with trust as well.
Lulu: Security.
Anlan: Security, credit cards.
Lulu：Personal information?
Anlan: So credit card fraud is as well a big concern in the UK.
Lulu：Yes, right. One thing that people might notice if they are going to the UK from China, they will notice that mobile payment, scanning of the QR code, is much less common in the UK. At least I usually just pay with credit cards, I don't use mobile payment in the UK that much.
Anlan: No.
Lulu：Not nearly as much as what I'll do in China.
Anlan: Oh, no in China nowadays you can just go around without any cash. You just go around with your mobile phone. And it's a little bit similar to UK, but what we do is we still use credit cards and debit cards a lot more. So for example, we would use Chip and Pin.
Lulu: Chip and Pin, that's just you put in the card, and you have to key in the passcode, like you would do in the supermarket.
Anlan: Yes, not even that, a lot of the time now, if it's something under 20 pounds, last limits in the UK was 20 pounds, then you can just touch your credit card or debit card onto the machine, and it automatically takes it off.
Lulu: So, below certain amount, you don't even have to key in anything. That's convenient. And now, most of the shops, especially the bigger ones they have their own websites and people would buy through these websites.
Anlan: Oh, Yeah. So the shops are still successful at the moments are the ones that they have embraced of online shopping, because there is one thing you notice especially with clothes in the UK, that is quite popular. Is that you buy clothes online, but you are going to pick them in store. So you can try them on before you take them out of the shop. So for example, if they don't fit, then you can just return them to the store, straight away. So for example, when I buy clothes in the UK that's generally what I would do.
Lulu: You order online, you go to the shops, just pick it up and try it on, if it doesn't fit you, doesn't suit you, you just return straight away. So you don't have to mail it back. That's something you can do.
Anlan: Ja.
Lulu: Another big topic that has influence on probably the high street is globalization, so the impact of globalization and mass tourism.
Anlan: Oh, definitely. Especially in places like London, in Oxford streets, places where they do a lot of tourists, especially Chinese tourists, they spent a lot of money in the UK.
Lulu: Yes, so naturally a lot of businesses are trying to cater to Chinese travelers.
Anlan: Especially the higher end stores, like Harrods, but they are very expensive ones at least.
Lulu: So of course because people travel to other countries, English people travel to other countries and people from other countries travel to the UK, so people sort of start to expect new and different things like different variety of food. One thing I have noticed in the UK is, if you go to your middle range or lower end of supermarkets, you don't really see that much world food. But if you go to Waitrose, you go to M&S food, and then there is a lot of world food.
Anlan: Yes, it's very very popular. I remember growing up there, we have so many food you don't even heard of. For example sushi and things like that, I was unheard of, but nowadays, you can find them in every supermarket. It's not very good, but …
Lulu: Yes, good sushi in London still costs a lot. But you know, different seasoning, different wine from all over the world.
Anlan: Yeap. So that is just a little bit information about shopping in the UK. If you've been to the UK, Please let us know in the comment section.
Lulu: And maybe you can recommend us a few shops that you like.
Anlan: So until next time.
Lulu: We will see you next time. Bye.

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