Shopping mall store vacancies nationwide are now higher than they were during the record closures seen during the Recession in 2009. It is being predicted that 80,000 retail stores nationwide will close permanently in the next 5 years. Frank
Seems everything is going online and delivery.Or drive thru.This way we will never know our neighbors or even most family.
I don't know, but what I do know is, in the far eastern part of our city, an area called Cierra Center, which includes Macy's, Best Buy, large movie theater and numerous restaurants are still going strong.
@Cody Fousnaugh Macy's is bankrupt. Did Macys take bankruptcy? "The department store chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in May after its sales collapsed amid temporary store closures. The company was at risk of total liquidation for months as it negotiated with its creditors. ... "For a long time, we've seen foot traffic at department stores declining," Hudgins said."
I just done some online research, Frank, and there are numerous stores that have filed bankruptcy, but continued to stay open and still are. Some stores do end up closing completely, but some don't.
I read years ago that brick and mortar store would become a thing of the past. That most things would be bought online. Actually it is very frustrating when you need to see, feel, hear something before being bought. It has been happening for awhile but many are just now noticing it and they think it is because of the pandemic - but not true. Everything has and will continue to change in the world of our generation. Even the robots are taking over more than you probably want to know. Walmart has dropped carrying so many food items and other dept. things from the store to buying online only. Sad in some ways, but mystifying also. Alexa will be running things all over
Things are drastically changing alright and there is nothing we can do about it. Those robots look scary.
This is largely driven by consumer behaviour. As @Gloria Mitchell said, I have a need to see, feel, hear something before being bought. I HATE buying clothes off of the web, both because of fit as well as quality. I needed a new pair of boots a while ago and ended up at Tractor Supply as my only option. I was thinking that there might be an opportunity to open a store (or stores) for folks who feel the same way, thinking the pendulum might swing the other way. But those stores would be nothing more than free dressing rooms for Amazon, so to speak; in other words, people would come to the store to touch & feel stuff and to try it on, then say "I can buy it cheaper on line" and your sales would be $0.00 One of the guys at my local 3rd party Verizon store recently told me "You wouldn't believe the number of people who come here, pick our brains, touch our inventory, then leave and buy online." There are lots of factors that impact this, but the bottom line is that businesses provide what the customer wants. Customers buy solely on price, and a brick & mortar stores' costs can't compete, so here we are.
One of the goals of the shutdowns during the pandemic was to force most commerce online, as it is more easily tracked there. It forces the purchaser to use some form of electronic transfer, which can be easily tracked. Google knows everything that is bought and sold on the web or paid electronically.
What also frightens me are the ads for online medical diagnosis and psychological counseling. No more sanctity of what is discussed behind closed doors...it's all out there on servers. Doctor/Patient is replaced by Device/Database.
I just got back from my local Walmart. There are a couple of employees standing at the entrance handing out Help Wanted flyers, asking folks to talk to kids/grandkids/etc about working there. This is a combination of the perennial loss of workers due to "back to school/college" and the Fed's "Pay to Not play," possibly with a sprinkling of Virginia legalizing marijuana.
You stick out your tongue at your Smartphone, the doctor tells you that you've got jaundice, you remind him to adjust the contrast on his monitor, then he gives you a clean bill of health. What could possible go wrong?
I've been down enough medical assenbly lines since Sept 2019 .Od course I am old now but Ithink some of my illness was rushed up by a few doctors. I still go to them in emergency though.I have always been leary of them though.