Retail consultant predicts 200,000 stores to shut down in the next 4 months

[NickD 203]

Really never cared much for shopping malls, in Venezuela all the major grocery stores are in malls, have to pay for parking with long lines, and can take two hours just to buy a quart of milk. Can't just walk in and walk out. Took my wife and me about three hours to walk through the Mall of America, everything is on sale, but 50% off on a 300 buck pair of shoes didn't sound like a good deal. Only four blocks away from our USCIS field office, asked my wife if she wanted to go the last time, she said, no thanks. It's a mad house.

Our shopping mall in town is dying a slow death, was extremely popular in the 80's, only about 40% of the stores are left. Expect you to move in with restaurants, movies, and lots of these gift stores for dust collectors you really don't need. When times get tough, you don't buy stuff you don't need and that seems to be their main market.

Shopping malls and Wal-Marts around here are built out of towns, then the cities get all upset about downtown. Very typical, old buildings that should have been torn down a long time ago are now all historical landmarks. Still can walk in and out, streets were converted to diagonal parking where main street becomes a one way, but practically all these places are opened from 9 to 5 when most are at work, so die anyway, guess they haven't figured that out yet. But like dealing with a person that knows what they are selling.

Wal-Mart isn't so dumb, buy 40 acres at 200 bucks an acre, use about 15 of that for their store and parking, sell the rest to other stores that want to be nearby at a million bucks an acre. Another trend is the convenience store, have one just about at every block in town, some of those didn't last very long either. We have zero electronic repair shops in town, 25 years ago, had six, all out of business, but one shoe repair shop left, but that guy is getting pretty old.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

Convenience stores rock

[Joseph & Ana 0]

Where i live used to be considered "up-scale". Now, just in the past year there are many many vacant buildings and more liquidations coming. Soon, this whole state will look like Detroit.

Where are you?

The Plymouth Canton Area of Michigan

[Otto 83]

We have zero electronic repair shops in town, 25 years ago, had six, all out of business..

Who bothers to get electronics repaired? (Answer, no one.)

[SnME 3]

It is tough on the little guy...I am one. Business has slowed in the past year for sure but that is not all that has our back against the wall. Before all this economic turmoil began we were already feeling the pinch. Prices on everything had risen due to the $4.00+ gasoline, all my purchases had seen an increase in the neighborhood of 20-30%. Then Uncle Sam raised the minimum wage (THANKS TED) so my 16-19 year old school kids could make ends meet. Along with the minimum wage increase comes increased medicare and social security matching funds from my business on top of the additional workmens comp insurance payment because its all figured off payroll. So a 30% increase in food and packaging cost, 40-45% increase in payroll costs and 10-15% increase in insurance costs is really hurting.

I am starting to wonder if after 9 years I should be doing something else now, I am sure not many people would adjust well to a large pizza that 2 years ago was $15.00 increasing to $21.00 just so I can stay here.

Anyway enough of the ranting...

Little Caesars

Promotion: HOT-N-READY Pizza - Get one 14-inch large cheese or pepperoni pizza for $5 at participating locations.

Pre-promotion price: $10.99 (one large one-topping pizza)

Promotion Price: $5

Bottom line for restaurant: Profit of roughly 90 cents a pizza

Introduced six years ago, Little Ceasars HOT-N-READY Pizza promotion offers 14-inch cheese and pepperoni pies for just $5. Even though some stores charge about 55 cents more than that, margins are still slim. The cost of a single pizza's ingredients and packaging amounts to about $3.50, according to a franchise operator in Georgia. Tack on another 60 cents for rent, labor and utilities and franchisees earn roughly 90 cents a pie. Little Caesars' spokeswoman Colleen Kmiecik says the company's own calculation on per-item profitability differs from those provided to us by franchisees, but she declined to provide specific figures. She also says the company provides long-term profitability information to its franchisees to show how the promotion will boost their bottom line, but would not provide further details.

The Little Skeezers out here ALWAYS has a help wanted sign in the window.

[SnME 3]

We have zero electronic repair shops in town, 25 years ago, had six, all out of business..

Who bothers to get electronics repaired? (Answer, no one.)

You dont own any quality stereo equipment do you?

I got quite a few high dollar processors for my guitar rack. A $900.00 Profex started acting goofy and it needed repair. You dont just toss a toy like that in the trash when it messes up...

I sent mine back to Peavey and they replaced the damaged circuits/components for @ $80.00. Works like new now...

Computers as well can be fixed MUCH cheaper than replacing them... Parts occasionally go south but it is always much cheaper to repair than replace the entire computer.

Quality components/electronics last longer and are worth repair. WalMart junk is worth tossing...

[Carlawarla 1]

The demise of the malls....

Big Box Stores have replaced them it seems. Small business seems to be the thing of the past...

It's interesting that you posted this so close to the holiday season. I remember here on VJ and in the news around the same time last year these predictions being made.

Unfortunately for retail stores, I believe this resulted in less gift cards bought because people were fearful the stores would be closed and wouldn't honour the cards.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

The demise of the malls....

Big Box Stores have replaced them it seems. Small business seems to be the thing of the past...

It's interesting that you posted this so close to the holiday season. I remember here on VJ and in the news around the same time last year these predictions being made.

Unfortunately for retail stores, I believe this resulted in less gift cards bought because people were fearful the stores would be closed and wouldn't honour the cards.

My wife and I took some friends of ours to a neighborhood Italian place for dinner over the weekend. These people don't eat out much and don't have a lot of non-chain options where they live so when they do eat out it's at a chain place. The food at this place is awesome, some of the best I've had and all they could do was keep comparing it to the ####### they get at the olive garden. The OG is nice but there's really no comparison.

I think most consumers are like that today. Look at how many people think Pizza Hut and Domino's is real pizza, simply because they don't know any better.