ABSTRACT
All governments of the Western industrial nations intervene in the retail sector of the economy. Boddewyn and Hollander (1972) suggest that 'Few, if any, countries have a public policy toward retailing, de facto or de jure, but they usually have a set of policies that deal with retailing more or less (mainly less) explicitly, coherently, and consistently.' Compared with the agricultural and manufacturing industries, there have been comparatively few accounts of public policy formulation in retailing and an even smaller number of attempted evaluations of such policies. One of the reasons for this apparent lack of interest is the relatively small number of policies formulated and implemented with specifically the retail sector in mind, but the large number of policies aimed at other sectors which impinge on retailing. So, for example, policies aimed at restructuring the coal industry in Britain have repercussions on retailing through the redistribution of population and income resulting from the policy. Most government economic policy has a trickle-down effect on retailing. Even macroeconomic policies resulting in spatial concentrations in unemployment have effects on retailing. It is well established that a response to unemployment is to seek self-employment in retailing and so, for example, spatial patterns of growth and decline in independent retailing are influenced, in part, by national or even EEC-directed policies on regional industrial development. Direct policies towards retailing are few, but indirect policies are many.
