I was thinking about this a while ago. I used to be on very good terms with the local newsagent, who used to relish in the stereotype of being a Pakistani newsagent. He would put on a ridiculous accent for elderly customers who expected him to speak that way (in reality, he had a broad Warrington accent because he was born there and was as English as they came), he would pretend to be interested in cricket for the old blokes (in reality, he knew just enough to hold a conversation), and he knew exactly what each customer wanted.
He was a good bloke, because when I was buying some magazine, we got chatting about video games, and I told him that it was a huge pity that I couldn't afford to buy all the magazines that I wanted to read. He grinned, then let me into a secret: he didn't return the magazines, all he did was cut off the front page header to be returned to the distributor, who would then refund him for the unsold copies. So, once a week, he told me to come round and give him a hand by removing the old titles from the shelves/putting the new ones up, and in return, I could keep whatever magazines I wanted. He only asked that I kept buying a magazine a week as I was already doing, so it was fair enough.
Utterly great bloke, and he said I was doing him a favour because he had to pay for rubbish collection anyway. It got to the point where I'd be coming home with stacks of magazines every week! Always wondered what happened to him, though with his work ethic, I dare say he's a millionaire somewhere.
But yes, I noticed last time when I was in the UK that the newsagent has become very much a dying breed.
