Small is beautiful when it comes to shopping

Creative Impact, the independent survey on the De La Warr Pavilion, critically pointed out that, sandwiched between larger neighbours Hastings and Eastbourne, Bexhill is deficient in multiple stores.

That is undeniably true. Many might wish it otherwise but it is a financial fact of life that Bexhill's geographic situation '“ and its absence of spending power '“ does not make it attractive to the big high street names.

But it is the repetitive nature of towns and cities featuring nothing more than endless permutations of the nation's multiples which has robbed them of their individuality and character.

That is why the loss of local stores such as Bexhill Lighting and Gift Centre and Mr Anstey's Linen Shop is such a blow.

Bexhill was once so proud of being "the town that is different" that it adopted the slogan for its postmark.

Such local stores were the very essence of what help make Bexhill "different" and what makes exploring what it has to offer a delight for the more discerning visitor.

But it is not all doom and gloom.

This week two locally owned and managed shops are celebrating being named in the Independent Achievers' Academy's list of Britain's Top 100 independent retailers.

Congratulations to Little Common's SSD Little Convenience Store and to Newsmart of Western Road for gaining places in that top 100.

To do so they have had to withstand the scrutiny of "mystery shoppers" - investigators who pose as customers to gain a true assessment of a convenience store's approach to customer relations and value for money.

Mystery shopping can quickly reveal the committed shop-keeper and expose those for whom the bottom line of the balance sheet is the only thing that matters.

Two out of the nation's top one hundred is not bad for a rose between, shall we say, two rather larger retail shrubs.