How to Survive The Slow Withering of Brick-and-Mortar Retail

DataCrafts @ DataWeave
DataWeave
Published in
2 min readApr 27, 2017

For years, the consumer electronics chain Radioshack has endeavored to stay alive in our ever-changing world. Despite their efforts, they have filed for bankruptcy for the second time, in as many years. As of now, the company is closing 200 of their 1,500 stores, slightly more than 13% of their locations

This one-time retail “giant” isn’t alone on the path of reduction in force. Macy’s has announced that they will close 63 stores, and Sears will lock their doors for the final time on 150 of their stores this fiscal year.

Brands too are feeling the heat. Ralph Lauren recently announced the closure of an unspecified number of stores (including its Polo store on Fifth Avenue, New York City), and a reduction in its workforce.

The internet is impacting brick and mortar sales the way that Sears Roebuck and Montgomery Ward catalog mail order sales impacted the general store at the turn of the last century.

Online Retail Plays the Spoiler

The disruption of the retail industry following the onset of e-commerce is largely due to the change in shopping behavior. Shoppers today can sit at home and compare multiple retailers before making a purchase. This has a significant impact on consumer expectations and how retailers do business today.

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DataCrafts @ DataWeave
DataWeave

We aggregate noisy public data on the Web and transform it into actionable insights for businesses.