Daily shopping

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    Throughout the 1800s, food shopping for the middle classes was a daily activity involving trips to the butcher, the fishmonger, the baker and the grocer. A London street directory from 1890 lists the following shops on a single street: confectioner, grocer, tobacconist, pub, dairyman, tripe seller and cheesemonger. Shop assistants would serve individual customers directly. The idea of customers helping themselves was unheard of. Many ingredients such as butter and flour had to be weighed and bagged by the shop staff before being sold to the customer. Goods were sometimes bought 'on tab' and paid for once a month. Shopping was often delivered to customers' homes via a delivery boy in a horse and cart or perhaps a newfangled bicycle.

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