You know I just loved that store at one time....Not only has the economy hurt stores like this, but the Internet has.
It is so much easier to buy off the Internet....
Our store is in a busy location across town. You have to make a special trip to go there, which I don’t. Internet sales only, might not be a bad idea for them.
I was an avid shopper there when I was first setting up house in my mid-20’s. In it’s time, I would compare it to how ‘cool’ I find ‘Crate and Barrel’ or ‘Williams Sonoma’ these days, but I understand WS is having some financial problems, too.
IKEA probably hurt Pier 1, and World Market and a few others that did it better than Pier 1 did, after a while.
Our local ‘Linens-n-Things’ just closed, and ‘Bed, Bath & Beyond’ might be right behind it. What a sloppy, messy, ill-run store our local one is!
There’s a gorgeous stand-alone Pier 1 on Hwy 100 (Capitol Drive) in Milwaukee, WI that friends and I would visit a few times a year. I always found something fun and funky there.
I’ve yet to buy home furnishings on line. I’m tactile; I like to touch stuff before I buy it. :)
Cost Plus is a cool store too. I hate to see them go, I have bought some unique pieces there. But Z-Gallery and Pottery Barn all compete on the same general products.