I've lived in Switzerland for many, many years and only recently discovered a source for - guess what -
Small Onions!!!!!
I like to cook them whole in a "stew-thing." On the occasions I wanted big ones, I did get them where they sell them loose, not in bags.
Anyway, this whole thread is weird for me, since I'd been looking for small onions for years.
Another reason I like them small - one in the salad for the two of us means I don't have to find a gd bag for the leftover half of a big onion.
I see your point about needing a lot and when you have to peel away the top layers of 5 there's nothing left.
But I still maintain - I always could find big onions if I wanted them, I just couldn't find small ones.
Now, not finding scallions has been a major problem - solved, now, after all these years, if I'm able to go to the Asia store at HB Zurich