noun
closed-down store; household without a business
Refers to a former shop that has gone out of business and is now used only as a residence, or to a household that does not run a business. Often used in the context of traditional merchant houses.
この通りにはしもた屋が増えてきた。
The number of closed-down stores on this street has been increasing.
彼の家は代々続いた商家だったが、今はしもた屋だ。
His family had been merchants for generations, but now they live as a household without a business.
商家 refers to a merchant house or shop that is still in business, while しもた屋 refers to a former shop now used only as a residence.
空き店舗 is a vacant storefront, emphasizing the emptiness of the commercial space, whereas しもた屋 emphasizes the conversion to residential use after the business has ceased.
Derived from the Kansai dialect past tense of 仕舞う (しまう), meaning 'to finish' or 'to close', combined with 屋 (や, 'shop'). Literally 'finished shop', referring to a store that has ceased business.