Retail RIP

So, there were reports again yesterday regarding the possible closure of many more retail stores.  This seems to be a daily occurrence now as the retail industry continues to go through serious changes.  Most of the media world blames the online shopping craze as the cause of these store closures.  However, many economists are quick to point out that credit cards may be maxed out at this point and consumers can no longer buy things.

After some research, I tend to side with economists as the numbers clearly show that while online spending is definitely increasing, the amount does not equal the loses on the physical store side.  People have stopped spending.   Credit card stress in this country is reported to be the highest it has been since 2009, with delinquencies on the rise. Things are starting to get a little tense here in the “land of the free and home of the brave”.

I do believe there is another factor playing a role here, maybe it is a small role but a role never-the-less.  This blog is dedicated to the ever-decreasing amount of customer service going on out there and I do believe that is contributing to store closures as well.  “So how do you figure that Grumpy?”  It’s simple really, you might recall in a recent blog that I wrote about the trouble we had getting help with a television purchase.  We were treated like dirt and there was no concern about our needs or question in deciding on our purchase.

So, here is my theory; in making purchasing decisions on things where you don’t need to either try it on or test drive it, why not just buy it online?  It is cheaper, less hassle, and you don’t have to leave your home, fight traffic, find a parking spot or deal with big fizzy douches disguised as store associates.  Now, I am not picking on the employees here but rather the dick-head corporate executives who don’t pay them a living wage.  It’s is difficult not to be a big fizzy douche when you must work three jobs to feed your family.

This theory stands the test, recently, my love and I decided on purchasing new recliners for our home and once again found the buying experience to be less than exhilarating.  Once again, the store associates in this venture were anything but helpful, most of them simply pointed us in the direction of the floor exhibit chairs and politely excused themselves.  So, our strategy turned to simply finding the model of chair that we wanted and order it online.

Believe me when I say that it kills me to continue to send money to the online store with the swoosh dick for a logo, but it makes the shopping experience in many cases easier and much more desirable.  I believe that many folks out there are using the same strategy to make their purchase decisions, hell, in some cases, this is done while buying cars!  This type of habit reduces traffic in the brick-and-mortar stores which could lead to a loss of point-of-purchase sales (POP), possibly diminishing a retail stores total income.

The reshaping of the retail industry is probably caused by many factors, but one thing is certain; with the reduction of physical stores, there is also a serious reduction in job opportunities.  Even though these jobs are not high paying they are still jobs, at least for the time being.  I believe the death of the boutique, family-owned store was the beginning of the end for the retail experience, even though malls seemed to be the latest craze, they too have met their end.

Maybe a total collapse of our economic system would give a rebirth to the old store model, but who the hell would want to go through that?  In the meantime, some dramatic economic changes are coming our way, I just hope we are ready for them.

Talk To Ya Later

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