Shopping generally is crap, no matter where you go. I have more interesting things to do with my time and that's why I try to do the shopping in a way that inflicts the least pain.
I generally agree, but beg to differ in the case of Asia. I'm shopophobic(sic) but there are some great markets, shopping centers which can entertain me for several hours without me having to shop anything. But I won't deny that shopping centers here are awful and probably worse than anywhere else due to a lack of diversity and entertainment.
The much vaunted Bern Westside is a huge missed opportunity.....no "destination" stores at all.....why would anybody travel outside town to visit Globus or Migros when you can do the same thing in town?
If you are ever down in the Ticino, dip into Foxtown in Mendrisio. We went there a few weeks ago, and admittedly they did have a sale on even their outlet prices, but I picked up some absolute bargains (NorthFace waterproof for CHF 180 which I'd seen for CHF 540 on t'internet (US site) ) plus lots of shoes from good makes (Bally, etc.).
And there lies the problem with Stücki. It doesn't contain much other than what is already in town. And for most people it's harder to get to than town, it's not a particular pleasant place to be.
Once the novelty wore off, Stücki was always nearly empty whenever I've been.
But what are you expecting? The only shops that are really worth going out of the way for are things like second-hand bookshops, antiques shops, handcraft and hobby shops etc, ie shops that are genuinely unique and where you can still genunely find stuff that you can't get on the Internet. But that type of shop doesn't make sufficient profit to afford the rent in a shopping centre. Only the run of the mill chains can afford it there. Therefore there is no reason to go.
Plus, if you're going to go all the way to Stucki you might as well continue over the border to Germany. Stucki is depressing. When I first arrived in Basel I stayed two nights at the hotel there. On the odd occasion Stucki is actually open outside of office hours, it was deserted. It was genuinely depressing to walk around.
I can't speak for everywhere, but where I lived the malls succeeded because they were a much better option than the local town centre. They had bigger shops and lots of them and often incorporated some form of entertainment. And in a car-oriented country they were easier to get to and park.
Stüki misses out on all these points.
I'm on the fence whether that's a pity or not. I'd rather they'd spent that money extending the tram up to Marktkauf so I could easily have a different shopping experience.
What is the value of my holding ? Does it justify my time ? Do I really care about Migros ?
1) Never been notified but presumably I am a minority shareholder
2) Highly unlikely
3) I am a consumer, I care about consumer value and not getting ripped off by a protectionist system. I don't give a shit about Migros as a touchy-feely institution.
AYB
PS: Anyone can start a charity and perhaps become rich doing so while benefiting from the tax breaks.
Another problem in Switzerland is location management and the overall buerocracy in setting up something new without anybody getting their panties in a twist. If it were up to me, I'd tear down 50% of all the ugly buidlings and replace them with new, efficient taller edifices. Incorporate a monorail and join streets together in order to create more, wider one way roads for an optimized traffic flow....but this all is highly unlikely to happen here in Switzerland, because everybody who's got something to say has their head stuck back in the 70s with the notion, that Switzerland is leading the way into the 21st century whilst failing to realize that their actions are taking the country back to the 19th century.
I assume you mean Shopping in Switzerland generally is crap which I agree with. Else you derive no fun from shopping as a pastime. In which case I wonder about your enthusiasm for attending retailer "shareholder meetings"...
I don't attend those shareholder meetings. But that's because I can't be pi**ed. However, if I felt strongly about it I feel my energy would be better invested going to the meetings and ranting there and getting some answers from the people who actually have the power to change something rather than ranting on the EF and hoping that that will somehow magically make things happen.
Shopping anywhere is crap. Okay, as Simon_CH says, if you're on vacation in some exotic place it may be refreshing to see the different types of item on offer. But I'm sure that if I lived there and had that every day I'd get used to it and find it dull. Shopping is a means to an end. I need to buy stuff so I can eat. I don't get a kick out of it. If I want to be entertained I go somewhere else and do something else. I know some people consider shopping a source of entertainment but stuff stacked on shelves is not entertaining to me. If it was I'd spend more time in my basement.