You might find it inconvenient to have to walk to the back of a grocery store to get your essentials, but there's a strategic reason for the layout design.

America is proud of being a nation built on the back of small business. Or at least that’s the narrative we tell ourselves, writes reader Peter McMahon from the Hill Country outpost of Boerne, Texas.

He didn't realise police officers were waiting in the back of the shop, ready to pounce, after the store had reported several thefts. Bell was caught in the act by officers who swooped in and took him ...