The Rise of U.S. Retail Giants: A Century of Political and Economic Shaping

The U.S. retail sector, once dominated by small, independent merchants, has transformed over the past century into a landscape controlled by retail giants. In the late 19th century, most U.S. retail was local. However, this shifted with the rise of catalog retailers like Sears and Roebuck, which saw rapid growth, followed by Montgomery Ward’s expansion. By the 1930s, chain stores began to proliferate, with the Atlantic and Pacific (A&P) supermarkets leading the pack with over 15,000 locations.

Fast-forward to today, and the dominance of retailers like Walmart, Amazon, and Target is undeniable. Currently, 90% of Americans live within 10 miles of a Walmart, and five of the top 10 U.S. employers—Walmart, Amazon, Home Depot, Kroger, and Target—are retailers. In addition, logistics giants UPS and FedEx play a crucial role in supporting the retail economy.

This prevalence of massive retail chains is largely unique to the U.S., where domestic consumption is a driving force behind economic growth. Additionally, the U.S. has five times as much retail space per capita as Japan and the U.K., and 10 times as much as Germany. Unlike in Europe, the U.S. has few regulations limiting shopping hours.

How did we arrive at this point? While major chains like Walmart and Amazon are known for their business prowess, the full story involves over a century of political and legal debates that shaped the landscape of U.S. retailing. MIT political scientist Kathleen Thelen, in her new book Attention, Shoppers! American Retail Capitalism and the Origins of the Amazon Economy, dives into the role of political and legal forces in the rise of large, low-cost retailers.

“The markets that we take as given, that we think of as the natural outcome of supply and demand, are heavily shaped by policy and by politics,” Thelen explains.

Thelen’s book offers a unique perspective, drawing comparisons with European economies and taking a historical approach to the growth of chain retailing. For instance, she highlights how alternative commercial arrangements, like cooperatives, were stifled by U.S. antitrust laws, which favored big corporations while suppressing smaller competitors. This legal framework gave a significant advantage to large retailers, including Sears, which relied on the U.S. Postal Service’s money order system to reach customers who lacked bank accounts.

Smaller retailers resisted the expansion of large chains, particularly during the Great Depression, but big retailers found ways around regulatory constraints. “Antitrust laws in the United States were very forbearing toward big multidivisional corporations and very punitive toward alternative types of arrangements like cooperatives, so big retailers got a real boost in that period,” Thelen says. Over time, antitrust law increasingly prioritized consumer prices, further benefiting low-cost retailers.

As Thelen argues, prioritizing price reduction often leads to lower wages for workers, with large retailers driving down wages both directly and through pressure on suppliers. “If you prioritize prices, one of the main ways to reduce prices is to reduce labor costs,” she says, noting that low-cost discounters are often low-wage employers.

In her analysis, Thelen suggests that the American retail system’s focus on low prices, low wages, and high consumer convenience has led to a “deep equilibrium,” where low-wage workers rely on these retail giants to make ends meet. Meanwhile, the speed of modern delivery systems has become a normal part of American shopping culture.

“The triumph of these types of retailers was not inevitable,” Thelen reflects. “It was a function of politics and political choice.” With ongoing debates about labor law reforms and antitrust enforcement, the current retail equilibrium may persist for the foreseeable future, unless significant changes are made to the system.

Through Attention, Shoppers!, Thelen offers readers a comprehensive look at the economic forces that have shaped the retail sector, helping explain the giant retail landscape many Americans take for granted today.