What effects of opening a shop might have on existing business?

it might attract people to the area and hence help other businesses

it might charge less than other shops selling the same thing and hence increase competition - force the other shops to lower their prices or close down altogether if they are a small shop and cant afford to lower their prices

I think you may have to elaborate on the question if you're hoping for useful answers.

all depends have you done your reasearch are your items in the shop something everyone will buy if so cant see no harm

Could you provide a little more information, please? This will enable us to better answer your question succinctly.

For example, is the newly opening shop a small "mom-n-pop" type that's similar in offerings to another small shop? Or a large company coming in with offerings similar to that of an existing, much smaller store? Or..???

Who's opening the shop? If a general store is opening within a town centre, then you will have to work all hours(poss 24 hrs a day) to beat the out of town Superstore.
Should an unusual service or product be offered in the new store, eg. skates, mountain bikes, or boutique fashion, then the effect on existing business will be slight, but conducive to a comprehensive shopping experience for the town
Local marketing is essential now to discover the real need of the area, and whether passing trade will want to buy it!

Without disturbing your existing business in your shop, you can do distribution of products to wholesalers, importers and restuarant supplies by having a tie up with a (company or an affiliate in another country) who can support you with the supplies.

I can provide you with this kind of support, information and financial aspects for starting a new distribution setup business as I have done it before for many years and can assist you in setting up such a business and if you need any help you can send me an email to rahimtula2007@yahoo.com

A Rahimtula