Posted on 01/07/2020 4:19:53 AM PST by rightwingintelligentsia
FORT WORTH, Texas — Pier 1 Imports is closing nearly half its 942 stores as it struggles to draw consumers and compete online.
The home decor company said Monday it is closing up to 450 stores and will also shutter distribution centers. It didn't say where the store closures would occur, but it operates stores in the U.S. and Canada. Pier 1 also plans layoffs at its corporate headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas.
There are seven Pier 1 locations in the Pittsburgh area. We’re working to find out if any of those are on the closure list.
The company didn’t say how many workers will be impacted.
(Excerpt) Read more at wpxi.com ...
I find it very easy to separate the crap from the good stuff on line. So easy to go down the line of items on line. Easier than walking around a store where you don’t know where things are. On known items I tend to buy brand names. I like brand names. I like tropicana OJ and Kleenex tissues. Neither of which I buy from Amazon. That’s what I go to Costco for.
I remember back when Pier One sold a lot of cheap imports. A lot of kitschy stuff but affordable if you wanted to pick up some things to decorate with on a budget. The last time I was in one, it was more like Crate & Barrel. Crazy expensive for items that can be purchased much cheaper elsewhere and not just on-line.
Sam’s came to our area in Seattle about 20 years ago and we became members for a year. The thing we really liked about it was there were not long lines at the counter (but we enjoy that in the Louisville stores now).
But here is why we didn’t keep our membership: We noticed a lot of overlap of sorts in the products they sold, but there was a key difference: Sam’s would be a little cheaper, but have significantly lower quality. They are sort of like a box store version of Wal-Mart, which makes sense.
One example: We bought a vacuum cleaner at Costco and then went to Sams club and saw the same one for $30 less. But then we examined it closely. Though they were both the same base unit, the Costco one had the “rubbery feeling” hoses with internal wire while the Sams one was one of those cheap plastic accordion hoses you see on a shop vac. Also, the Costco one had a very robust attachments bag of goodies while the Sams one had a couple of basic attachments that, again, were cheaper (attached brush on one at costco while it’s equivalent at sams had no brush). That is just one example.
The funny part was that if you were not familiar with either store, and just walked through both, they looked almost identical. but the devil was in the details.
We have a Sams within 40 minutes of us, but found costco worth the extra trip. But, again, Amazon is eliminating the need for either for us.
Yes I bought a few things from them last year and they were utter junk. Underwear that basically fell apart, then a pack of shaving cream thinking I was getting a good deal and they sent me 3 cans that were about 3 inches high, airline shaving cream. That was it for me.
We stop by Pier 1 about once a year, wander around and then leave not having purchased anything. Same old stuff that we don’t need or really like. Lots of stuff from India and that part of the world.
BUT we actually do find things to buy at Cost Plus. Usually, I find some interesting food item to take home and try. Problem is, if I like it, I can never find it again. Oh, well.
Not one damn thing made in the US.
Nothing.
All of it, cheap Chinese crap or one of the poorer Asian countries...Malaysia, etc, to include much crap from Viet Nam.
They never got my business in the first place.
One rea I really don’t see that happening is building materials/hardware.
I work for a supplier and spend lots of time in stores. When people need stuff, they need it now, not tomorrow.
I’ll be in a store for 4-5 hours and see some guys multiple times.
In my case, there’s a Home Depot two blocks from my house. If I’m on a project, I may make three trips to my supply cabinet, I mean Home Depot. I don’t keep extra stuff, I just go buy what I need when I need it.
Many of my companies products are available online but are wildly overpriced compared to store purchases. Plus, some of them are shipping hazards, which really kicks up the prices.
Let me ask you...
I know you live in the sticks. With your Amazon purchasing, does UPS/FEDEX deliver without any problems? We’re considering moving out a fair distance from civilization, and Amazon would be the go-to for many purchases.
“Amazon et al is easy and you get a better choice at a lower price.”
Always check out Walmart to compare prices. Walmart beats Amazon on many common items, and shipping is free.
Amazon is good for buying obscure items like battery-operated beanballs for cats or Navaho sand paintings. Beware, though, as the ChiComms are manufacturing counterfeits and knockoffs. And Amazon sells fake stuff.
Same here. “By back when” for me was 40 years ago. I needed some decent looking stuff to spread around my pad and Pier I worked. Fortunately that life style did not continue for me and I have not been in one in over 20 years. First off, the prices seemed to rise in reverse relationship to the quality of the items. Second, I had all that stuff I could use plus my wife was not happy with it! So, out with the old, in with the new I guess but from somewhere else. Amazon? Not so much. I like touching stuff and feeling it before I buy. Yeah, it can be returned but that is not my thing.
I like amazon. But I hate the thought that in 20 years only grocery stores will be around and only sell dairy products. It’s kinda sad really.
Online is head to head competition with Amazon which will eat their lunch.
We have a 1/4 mile long gravel driveway with a fairly steep incline the first 100 yards. For a time it was not very navigable by trucks. Fedex had no problem, but we had an agreement with UPS to pick up our stuff at their distribution center (in town). But we’ve fixed it so no problem.
And it turns out they have an agreement of some sort with the USPS. We now get deliveries at all times - even Sundays - in our mailbox. We have the large style mailbox for just this reason.
Bottom line is that it is not an issue.
Well, it is called Pier 1 Imports for a reason. :)
I worked in a small items Amazon warehouse for two years, I saw all kinds of stuff I didn't know existed, and I was know to sit down on my weekends and order some of that stuff. Ended up buying some stuff I didn't need, that is how it goes though anywhere you shop whether it is online or in a store.
I completely agree.
BTW, just for fun, I priced 2x4 studs at amazon. In the local stores they are around $2.50 or so each. On amazon, they are around $28 each. I though it must be per dozen or something. Nope. It’s for a single 2x4 stud.
“If you can imagine it, someone made it.”
Really? How about a Roomba that cleans rugs and floors, and also goes out and finds hot women and brings them home?
Restaurant meals are often incredibly high in calories, sugar, sodium, and unhealthy fats – all of which negatively affects your health. Not to mention that family members who have sensitivities, intolerances, and food allergies have to be extra careful when picking food from the menu. Even then, there’s always the possibility of cross contamination in the kitchen.
I used to shop at one of the original ones in Wayne, Pa. and in Springfield, MA. I loved it. That was late 70’s and early ‘80’s. Much more variety back then. Over the years I would still go there but bought much less, maybe a candle or placemats. Haven’t been in one in recent memory.
There’s a Lowe’s and a Home Depot within minutes of me. I buy a LOT of stuff from them. I’m replacing molding thru-out the house, much of it MDF. I’d purchased molding from both stores in the past and it had been a good product. Now their MDF products are garbage (MDF is close to garbage anyway)...and expensive. There’s a Building Center a little further away...used primarily by contractors. I wound up buying all of the trim from them...for a much sturdier product with good profiles and half the price. Seriously, I bought a couple hundred feet of 7.25” speed base and it was exactly half the price of Home Depot...and a much better product.
On the other hand... I was running low on 2.5” finish nails for my Bostitch finish nailer. Checked the big-box stores...no dice. Checked Amazon, found exactly what I needed, ordered a container of a thousand and had them the next day.
Another diy project... I replaced every door handle, lock, hinge, door stop in the house...interior and exterior. I wanted it all in the same color/collection. Visited the Schlage site, identified exactly what I wanted right down to product numbers. Neither Lowe’s nor HD could put an order together for me. Wound up buying everything from Build.com...a great site for stuff.
I tend to shop around for stuff. I know you don’t have that luxury in your projects.
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