“So what's wrong if the country has 158 neighborhood California Pizza Kitchens instead of one or two? Virginia Postrel asks in her essay In Praise of Chain Stores (Postrel 348). As a rebuttal, I intend to answer his question with more than one reason. However, the answers I intend to offer apply not only to America's CPKs, but to all national retailers, big box stores, chain stores, etc. National retailers are destroying the local character of small towns. Chain stores should be limited to a few highly populated urban areas. Additionally, the costs saved through the convenience and familiarity of chain stores do not outweigh the negative economic impact and detrimental effects they can have on the well-being of a community. Postrel expands its support for national retailers throughout the trial, offering the opinion that it is not the stores that give places their character, but rather aspects such as terrain, weather and culture that make it font (Postrel 347). While terrain, weather, and culture may distinguish regions like New England from the Deep South and Southern California from the Midwest, it's community that gives each city its own character. A community is made up of residents, their restaurants, hardware stores, pharmacies, ice cream parlors, farmers' markets, etc. These places, and the interactions that occur daily in each establishment, constitute the fabric that differentiates them and create the fertile ground for diverse characteristics to flourish. While Postrel argues that the vastly different shopping establishments across America in the past are a myth, it is not necessarily the products that varied from store to store, but rather the aforementioned factors that truly define. . the middle of the paper. ....the number of establishments of a certain retailer built within a certain mileage. For example, having a Wal-Mart in the north and south of the city is excessive. There is no doubt that chain stores have a detrimental effect on the measurability and community of small towns. Not only are residents affected economically and collectively, but the character of the region is also threatened or compromised. In conclusion, we should all take a step back and see how we can give back to our community by leveling the playing field for local businesses. The first step to achieving this is to become aware of the negative influences that chain stores impose on small towns. Works Cited Postrel, Virginia. “Praise of chain stores.” Model Essays: A Portable Anthology. Ed. Jane E. Aaron and Ellen Kuhl Repetto. Boston: Bedford/St. that of Martin, 2013. 345-49