This is largely because they have the same shops, belonging _to__ the same companies. There are, of course, advantages to this situation. __For_ instance, if you buy something from a chain store while you are _on__ holiday which you later wish to return or have replaced, you can take it back to your local branch. However, many people have little to say in fovour of the modern high street. In the past, the high street was _full__ of small, independent shops, most of __them_ specialised _in__ one type of service or product. So, there would _have__ been a baker's, a cobbler's, a hardware shop and so on. They not _only__ offered a more personal service, but also a more friendly __one_. Nowadays, shops sell a wide __range_ of goods, but they don't often have those little extras, _like__ a handle for the food mixer you __have_ had since you were first married and do not want to _throw__ away. _In__ contrast, a shop in the old high street would have had that handle and it would have checked the food mixer to make sure it _would__ last another twenty years.
