Posted on 04/15/2017 4:03:12 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
From rural strip-malls to Manhattan’s avenues, it has been a disastrous two years for retail.
There have been nine retail bankruptcies in 2017—as many as all of 2016. J.C. Penney, RadioShack, Macy’s, and Sears have each announced more than 100 store closures. Sports Authority has liquidated, and Payless has filed for bankruptcy. Last week, several apparel companies’ stocks hit new multi-year lows, including Lululemon, Urban Outfitters, and American Eagle, and Ralph Lauren announced that it is closing its flagship Polo store on Fifth Avenue, one of several brands to abandon that iconic thoroughfare.
A deep recession might explain an extinction-level event for large retailers. But GDP has been growing for eight straight years, gas prices are low, unemployment is under 5 percent, and the last 18 months have been quietly excellent years for wage growth, particularly for middle- and lower-income Americans.
So, what the heck is going on? The reality is that overall retail spending continues to grow steadily, if a little meagerly. But several trends—including the rise of e-commerce, the over-supply of malls, and the surprising effects of a restaurant renaissance—have conspired to change the face of American shopping....
(Excerpt) Read more at theatlantic.com ...
Online shopping. I see it all over our neighborhood and people I know.
Too many stores
The economy never recovered from 2008 and debt levels are still insanely high.
Mindless consumption can’t continue on like it has.
I live in an apartment building-——and the mailroom is alwaysFULL of packages-——including mine.
Who needs the aggravation of going to a store where there is rarely anyone there to help you out.
.
.
Really? One word...Amazon.
Bigger than Wal-Mart now.
I love it. I almost never have to stop at any stores any more. Just bought a bunch of socks last week. Fantastic selection, great prices, no crowds or mall rats, fast delivery, and excellent return policies. What’s not to like?
The Demographic cliff. The first of the baby boomers are turning 71 this year. We don’t go to the malls. We buy online, when we buy at all.
To many women’s stores....where I live the Goodwill is doing a booming business ..also the Salvation Army
If you want your business to experience remarkable growth, advertise you are pro-Trump.
1. Mall rats.
2. Snot nosed punks for retail clerks.
3. People that have their head up their ass.
4. Pricing is ridiculous.
5. I have to get out and drive there(30 minutes to the nearest mall for me) Wally-world is 15 minutes at the most and I can go at 2am and be waited on immediately.
6. Poor selection.
7. Poor selection.
When people “check out” of employment, living at home or on welfare or disability, they don’t have much money to spend on these sorts of things, because they are just getting by. They may have found peace with not being the previous consumer they once were.
They also don’t show on unemployment rolls, because they aren’t looking for a job.
Convenient for the strange numbers, huh?
This may be out of left field but most people are highly distrustful of media, and media is advertisement and advertisement as we know it may be dying.
That is true. Online shopping is too convenient.
Rising minimum wage competing with on-line shopping. I go to the mall and it is only old people walking for exercise.
The food court does well however.
My kids (21-25) have 2-3 part time jobs. That is like 50 hours a week at like $10 bucks an hour and retail jobs is a big part of that. Obamacare killed entry level full time jobs.
Other than Grocery stores ( I got to squeeze the mellons) or Home Depot retail is RIP.nSorry but true
Too many stores with too much uninteresting product marketed to an uninterested and unsustaining audience.
JC Penny and Macy’s and Target actively offending their base.
Stores filled with blah just down the hall from boutiques filled with wow.
Giant stores with little of what one is actually looking for, when anything one wants is in a cellphone.
The world has changed since our great grandparent’s day.
I live on the rural side of a prosperous suburb, and if you’re ever in a line outside of a grocery store, it’s at Walmart, Tractor Supply, the Goodwill Store or Dollar General. People have clamped down on non-essential spending, especially on clothing, and I just don’t see that changing any time soon, even with people who have plenty to spend.
Going to the mall is just unpleasant.
In many malls in my area, both individual stores and the common areas of the mall, have annoying rock and roll and even rap sound tracks blaring. I hate that music. I do not want to do my shopping to a rock or rap beat. I wonder why in the heck these malls insist on soundtracks which drive people like me away. Unlike some of these young kids hanging out in malls who might like the music, I have money to spend.
Make the mall environment more pleasant and inviting and I will spend more time there.
Shifting consumer habits from brick and mortar stores to online......
Retail stores with a strong online presence are seeing both growth in sales plus the quick shift to online.
Those without are dying....
I even shop for my groceries on line....
Jeff Bezos.
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