Park and Shop Americans living out in the suburbs naturally take to their cars for almost everything, and many are proud of their new vehicles. Personal vehicles increase the range of shopping opportunities beyond the limits of public transit systems, with handy back seats to load up with shopping bags. Suburban shopping centers, with dedicated parking, spring up almost spontaneously.

	Bigger Lots The trend toward car-centric shopping arises naturally out west, where there is still plenty of room to spread out. Whether in town, or sprinkled down the highway, businesses find lots of available real estate. But suburbs everywhere are in a similar condition, with plenty of cars and lots of opportunities to create new shopping venues. Commercial strips grow into shopping centers.
	Delivered to Your Window The American romance with cars can be traced back to its earliest days in Los Angeles. Today, LA is a sprawling snarl of freeways, but in the 1940s it's ground zero for new ways to serve customers, who can now dine in the comfort of their own cars.