Traditionally, shops were places where locals ran into each other. This became much less true with the rise of malls and shopping centres.
Ironically, the upsurge in ecommerce is forcing shops to be less transactional and, in order to survive, they are having to think more about their place in the community (https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/video/amid-retail-apocalypse-the-future-of-commerce-is-community?utm_source=Subscribers&utm_campaign=59b7a64c0c-society-has-changed-victoria-s-secret-hasn-t&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d2191372b3-59b7a64c0c-417297929).
This is a matter of justice, the reassertion of distributive justice. It is confirmation of Pope Benedict’s argument (V&R Chapter 3), that contracts and transactions (commutative justice) cannot operate independently of social trust and cohesion (distributive justice). It’s a welcome development.
