I am a stay at home mom of two small boys. Like a lot of stay-at-home moms, I am limited to what stores are \”accessable to me\” by a number of things. Things like the width of store aisles, the ease of parking, helpfulness of employees, and the size and maneuverability of the available shopping carts are all a factor in where I can and can’t go.

In a majority of American households, the women do the necessary shopping for the house. Whether this is fair or not is irrelevantit is a fact. Frequently, women are required to bring their children along to do the necessary shopping. Things which I mentioned above play a larger role to consumers than one might thing. For example, I have an appointment at a nearby beauty supply store later this morning, and I am already dreading it. The aisles are narrow and cramped, and there are not shopping carts available. The amount of time I spend inside the store is going to be minimal, at best.

I believe this is true for a majority of women in my position. If it is difficult to shop the store because the ease of maneuverability, a good number of consumers are going to avoid the store or business as much as possible, and when they do enter the store, it will be for as little time as possible. This means less money is spent, and they are less likely to purchase \”impulse buys\”. They will be in and out of the store on a mission to get the few items they need and then get out before there is a public meltdown (either by mom or children!).

Of the various factors, maybe the most important one is the shopping cart. For me to shop at a store and possibly linger versus simply getting the specific items I seek, the shopping cart needs to be wide enough to securely place a car seat or infant carrier inside without the feeling of the possibility that the cart may topple over.

Every business should provide carts to fit the type of store and the products for which they sell. The carts should be light and sturdy, avoiding large heavy and bulky ones. Their size should be limited to the size of the aisles yet be large enough to accomodate the items sold. Not having the proper size cart for the size of the store and aisles makes shopping difficult and frustrating.

On several occassions, I have simply left a store due to frustration created by shopping carts being the wrong size for the shop I was in, or the wheels not working correctly or even aisles to cluttered for me the navigate through them to get to the items which I am most interested. I seem to avoid these stores in the future due to these bad experiences.

I understand that there is a fine line between having shopping carts the appropiate size in comparison to the needed aisle width to accomodate the type of products a store may carry. But I need a cart which is large enough for a five year old to sit in the basket along with whatever items I am purchasing. A good balance is needed for a store to provide a convenient place to shop.

Some may think it’s silly to put so much emphasis on where to shop based on their shopping carts, but it’s the truth. These factors all weigh in on which stores I will visit. There is a particular retailer I had to avoid until my son could sit up on his own since finding out that their carts would not allow me to safely secure my infant carrier to the front. However mundane it may seem, shopping carts do have an impact of the stores clientele. For me, the best shopping cart would be lightweight, possibly made from plastic, sturdy yet free turning wheels, wide enough to safely secure an infant carrier along with the needed space inside the basket for possibly another child, yet light enough as to not feel bulky while navigating through the store. The overall size needs to be proportunate to the aisle width and the products being sold. Such thought into the shopping carts may result in shoppers spending more time inside the store, hence spending more money.