It's clearly still in a state of flux - and events of the last few weeks in Ipswich have really shone a spotlight on that.
Marks and Spencer's decision to invest in a huge new department store at Copdock shows how clearly that store wants to chase the car-driven market.
It wants its food stores to be seen increasingly as upmarket supermarkets where you can buy all your groceries for the week and not just something special every now and then if you haven't got time to cook from scratch.
Marks and Spencer are hoping to open this new department store at Copdock in 2027. (Image: Marks and Spencer)
In another sector of the retail market we've seen the new Lidl being opened on the Anglia Retail Park - serving part of Ipswich and nearby villages that is some distance from any of the company's other stores.
Discount retailers Aldi and Lidl have really been on the expansion trail over the last few years - although Lidl has been lagging behind somewhat in the Ipswich area.
Not any more according to a senior manager who was at last week's opening - Lidl is looking for several more sites in or near the town.
Certainly the discount giants have come on leaps and bounds over the last 15 years. When the first Aldi in Ipswich opened in Meredith Road I was quite shocked when I first looked in there.
There were no brand names and everything just seemed to be sold off pallets - there were no staff to be seen in the aisles and while it was cheap I found the whole experience of going there was profoundly depressing.
That has changed dramatically - and during the credit crunch 15 years ago discounters like Aldi and Lidl really upped their game and attracted millions of new cost-conscious shoppers with refreshed or new stores and high-quality produce.
Now some of the established big names are struggling to keep up - the "big two" Tesco and Sainsburys seem to sail imperiously on but Asda and Morrisons are apparently struggling to maintain market share according to retail experts.
Certainly Asda is having another shake-up at the top with former boss Allan Leighton returning as executive chairman. It needs something done to it - it is starting to feel very dated.
One thing large stores need to be aware of is that they can just be too overwhelming for some customers.
If you're doing a weekly shop with one of the big boys it can take well over an hour. Even the biggest shop at Aldi or Lidl will probably see you finished within 45 minutes.
And don't get me started on loyalty schemes. As a non-loyal shopper I have cards for just about every retailer but frankly I'd rather they all just took the Aldi approach and dropped their prices a bit.
Some of these schemes are so complex they're virtually impossible to work out unless you have a PhD in accountancy - I've given up trying to work out Asda's cashpots, Christmas cashpots, and shopping missions!
The posh stores like Waitrose and Marks still seem to do well at attracting shoppers who like something special - and it is interesting that as well as going for a new department store on the edge of Ipswich Marks is considering opening stores in or near some other Suffolk towns.
All this isn't particularly good news for Ipswich town centre - although of course the deal with Marks to keep a food store there should help to support it.
And one thing seems certain - the shape of shopping is set to continue to change for many years into the future.
The opinions expressed in this column are the personal views of Paul Geater and do not necessarily reflect views held by this newspaper, its sister publications or its owner and publisher Newsquest Media Group Ltd.