The future of retail outlet stores
Toys R Us is closing all stores and liquidating their inventory.
This makes me wonder about the future of retail stores of the world today and what may happen in the next few decades.
Internet giants like Amazon already have the market cornered and even Walmart is utilizing the web to let customers click & buy to drive to the parking lot to have their orders hand delivered.
What are your predictions?
Retail brick and mortar stores are definitely in trouble. As many industries will be in the coming decades as the world changes. They'll have to adapt or die out. And most will die out, unfortunately.
I'm sad to hear Toys R Us is going out of business. I grew up loving that store and going there all the time, I have fond memories of buying my video games and toys there, and always felt excitement as we arrived in the parking lot. That's where I bought my N64, the first console I paid for myself and that I got at launch. The store I went to is still open and I'm going to make sure to stop by at least one more time before they close it.
Dunno, they'll be losses, but I still feel retail will go on. While the convenience of Amazon can't be ignored, you do a few clicks and 48hrs later a box arrives at your house, people still like to touch, feel and see in person certain items. Maybe not their laundry detergent bottle, but something like a television or decorative item.
I remember when eBooks first started out and it was expected that the bookstore would go the way of the dodo in 'X' amount of years because why go buy a book when you can just download it onto your Kindle or other device in a matter of seconds. But people like the feel and smell of books when reading; they like browsing around in an actual bookstore, so the bookstores remain, though arguably scaled back some.
I can relate to BF's story, Toys R Us going under hits a soft spot in my heart. I have very fond memories of going as a child and the unrestrained exciting when pulling into the parking lot and then taking my own children decades later and seeing them glow with the same joy.
Retail is generally more expensive than buying online and you need to waste time to actually go out and get it while you can usually easily find what you want from home. Its easy to see why retail is struggling to compete.
I think a lot of things will change relatively soon and in the future most products will have a greater online presence than street presence. We may see a downsizing in physical stores to a minimum.
Originally posted by BackFire
Retail brick and mortar stores are definitely in trouble. As many industries will be in the coming decades as the world changes. They'll have to adapt or die out. And most will die out, unfortunately.
that's it really. the old model of shopping is coming to an end and these companies can no longer survive by dryhumping customers with email blasts, resting on their laurels, and dreaming of that new boom just around the corner. . i think there will be a positive effect in that much less leasing space would be required for department stores, if they kept customers and inventory separate and no longer needed giant spaces to showcase products, they'd have a much more manageable and sustainable business model. as it stands, super expensive leases are part of what's been crushing retail outlets.
Originally posted by Robtard
I can relate to BF's story, Toys R Us going under hits a soft spot in my heart. I have very fond memories of going as a child and the unrestrained exciting when pulling into the parking lot and then taking my own children decades later and seeing them glow with the same joy.
They had Toys R Us stores in the 1950's?
Some things people want to see in person until the virtual reality part of online shopping catches up. (e.g viewing angles on TVs, audio quality of headphones, fitting of shoes/clothes, etc)
It's a gradual change, not a rapid one.
Think I can grab some sweet deals while Toys R us is liquidating assets?