Shopkeepers and urban change: moving beyond gentrification studies?

Abstract

Though the literature on commercial gentrification has grown considerably since the 2000s, it has several blind spots. Indeed, research has primarily focused on neighborhoods located in central areas, examining the retail landscape as well as consumer practices and identities. In this article, we discuss this literature and put it in dialogue with the literature on retailers and, more broadly, on independent professions. On this basis, we propose an analytical framework for studying commercial change from the shopkeepers’ perspective. The discussion is conducted in light of the concrete transformations of a commercial street located in a formerly working-class suburb of Paris. This case study illustrates the relevance of our approach, showing that even in an archetypal gentrified street, the profiles and paths of shopkeepers are varied, as is their relation to urban change.