Unless you happen to be a Goth, love punk music, or are into cult-movie merchandise, you probably haven’t heard of the US mall-based retail chain Hot Topic. The stores are aimed at teens and young adults who see themselves as “counterculture,” selling them everything from licensed band T-shirts and skinny jeans to Funko Pop vinyl action figures and other fringe collectibles. Whatever the counterculture kids are into these days, Hot Topic is where they go...
It was uncanny. Every time I needed some obscure type of screw, switch, or hinge, the team at my hometown hardware store—Elliott’s—knew exactly what I needed and where in the store’s many aisles of fasteners to find it.
I love getting gas at Costco, and not only because it’s the cheapest gas around. It’s because Costco makes its gas hoses extra long. So if I happen to pull up to the pump on the opposite side of the car my gas tank is on, I don’t have the anxiety of having to turn the vehicle around in a tight space with other cars lined up right behind me waiting their turn. Instead, I...
