People are using the retail stores as a sort of showroom, going and trying things on, checking them out and then going online for the cheapest price.
I don’t think it’s desirable that brick and mortar retail shuts down, but for higher end retailers especially, there’s a lot of overhead to carry with that big, fine store.
They can’t compete on price and never intended to compete on price, it’s the service, selection and overall experience that drives (or drove) their sales. It’s a rock and a hard place for department and specialty stores. All I can think of for them to do is to offer merch that cannot be bought anywhere else. They certainly can’t start blocking people from trying things on.
“People are using the retail stores as a sort of showroom, going and trying things on, checking them out and then going online for the cheapest price.”
I needed to replace the dog’s $22 harness last week and went to Petco. They didn’t have the size I needed in stock.
The online price was $8 cheaper and had free shipping.
It arrived in 3 days.
I don’t think showrooming is Nordstrom’s problem. I think it’s a combination of malls getting a bad rep, women’s apparel in the dumper, and Nordstrom just not stocking what folks want. I went to their website just now got a quick look. Didn’t have anything that tempted me other than a new (to me) fragrance. And that’s not something I’m going to buy for the first time online.