What you're pointing out is definitely an important contradiction. Talking about "mom and pop" shops is a bit of a distraction -- a minimum wage gives even larg

What you're pointing out is definitely an important contradiction. Talking about "mom and pop" shops is a bit of a distraction -- a minimum wage gives even large companies an excuse to become some of the worst offenders, which, in part, contributes to the VC-style sytem. Take a company like Amazon. Up until recently, they were known for paying their own warehouse workers low or minimum wage and working them like dogs. This is a highly profitable company. What have highly profitable companies done with their profits, by and large, since 2009? Stock buybacks and other types of security investments. This increases the pool of money that can be used for speculation by the wealthy -- and VCs, who can then "speculate" and keep otherwise "non-viable" businesses afloat. So while I don't necessarily agree with what you say about the small shops, you do have a valid point. These are structural problems.