flhrci
Final Approach
I only ever got to go to Children's Palace as a kid despite Toys R Us being nearby. Not a loss to me.
It's been growing increasingly skanky over the years. Not a big surprise.
That plus Amazon..
But given a choice, I'd prefer to buy local.
First, about ToysRus...higher priced than Walmart, sure, but until not too long ago they had a great selection and at a decent price. My only beef was with the snotty cashier our store had, an older woman. But I did like the store.
Rich, this is one of those times you and I will very much disagree. Except for WM, brick and mortars are dying quickly, and that's too bad. I LIKE being able to go into a store and see something in person because:
1. Nothing compares to being able to see and touch something, especially clothing, shoes, etc.
2. I like being able to take it home right then.
3. I like supporting our local economy.
4. If I need to return it for some reason it's typically much easier.
I'm willing to pay a higher price to get something local. It's a pet peeve of mine when someone goes into a local store to get hands-on, and then goes online to buy it. When I bought a security system last month I got some input from people here then went to a local store, even though it was a chain, talked with an employee, then talked with the manager to get feedback about the item...and was thrilled to have it up and running just a few minutes later. I was able to buy confidently knowing it met my requirements, which was a big deal for me since I needed a plug-n-play system.
I knew I could have saved $150 buy then buying it online, but I felt like I got my money's worth. With that said, I liked mine so much I wanted to get dad one and had no qualms about saving the $150 to get his online at a cheaper price, and I don't feel like I cheated the local retailer in doing so since I paid full price for mine.
Yesterday I had to replace the low beam bulb on my truck. I looked online to see what bulb I needed and went to the local auto parts store where they looked it up to verify before fetching it for me. It's been a while since I replaced one so I'd forgotten all about it. But the counter guy knew..."wait, GM lists the wrong low-beam for your truck", and he got me the right one.
There is something to be said about online retailers. There's simply no way brick and mortars can stock every item - so online retailers have the advantage. There's a limitless supply of styles, colors and sizes online, a HUGE advantage. You can find parts online you'd never have been able to find 50 years ago. Dad needed glow plugs for his 70 year old diesel tractor the other day and found them online within minutes. I'm not anti-amazon by any means. But given a choice, I'd prefer to buy local.
All restocked by a slow boat from ChinaI read a good article that stated we as a society are sliding back towards late 18th century shopping trends.
We only going to the store for items we need now to survive. Besides that we order our stuff online "Sears Catalog", it's loaded onto trucks and planes "railroad", and delivered several days to weeks later.
Another victim of corporate greed. Got bought not that long ago, new owners took on lots and lots of debt to get the property. Couldn't support the debt, so they didn't have the money to take care of the stores. So they all close, lots of little people loose their jobs but the big money guys all get their checks. Sorry, I've seen it before. Same exact thing happened to the grocery store down the street.
Amazon beats most retailers on selection, price, customer service, and convenience. If the physical retailers want to compete they're going to have to justify their higher prices by offering something useful- like employees who know something about the products and can help you.
Right now if it's not something I need immediately and I don't need to see it in person first I prefer to get it online and not have to deal with the hassle of going to a store. Probably why Amazon is so successful- they get people what they want at a good price with little or no BS.
Swing and miss. TRS was suffering when Amazon was at 4%. Like I said, the big shots get the cash, and the little guys the shaft. Same old story whether you buy it or not. Glad to hear they haven't wrecked your shop, yet.I assume you're referring to KKR. I seriously doubt corporate greed is what took them down. KKR happens to own a sizable portion of the company I work for as well, and we haven't noticed many ill-effects from their management. They do what most other investment firms do, they spend the first year or two trimming the low-hanging fruit to help generate value. They utilize their existing contracts with major suppliers to get lower pricing on goods and services and drive more to the bottom line. They don't go in and strip them of all cash so they can't take care of the stores. TrU suffered from the same problem as many of the legacy brick-n-mortar stores do: they can't compete with online retailers on price/selection. TrU has had some decent pricing over the last few years, which I noticed when buying an annual gift for my nephew. Previously, I'd been in a TrU maybe 3-4 times in my life (as a child) because it was inconveniently located, and much too expensive. If you can't adapt, you will fail. I can't even remember the last time I heard about a new TrU being built, which tells you that the demand likely peaked a long time ago.
There are some things I will pay more for instead of buying online. Children's toys aren't one of them.
Swing and miss. TRS was suffering when Amazon was at 4%. Like I said, the big shots get the cash, and the little guys the shaft. Same old story whether you buy it or not. Glad to hear they haven't wrecked your shop, yet.
My experience with the local BB is different- I've never walked out of there less than satisfied with the service. Then again I'm not looking for obscure computer components. But I agree that in the phone case, uh case, better inventory control is due.We really don't disagree at all. But how many brick-and-mortar stores actually have stuff these days, and have employees who know about that stuff? That's my complaint.
I understand that they have limited floor space. But does it make sense for Best Buy to have an entire aisle full of cases for one phone that they sell, and not a single case for another phone that they sell? You'd think they'd have at least one even if for no reason other than as an upsell. But you'd be wrong. (Employees who weren't morons would be a nice touch, too.)
Rich
I used to go for the boobie dolls.
Oh geez, c'mon, I kid I kid!
I read a good article that stated we as a society are sliding back towards late 18th century shopping trends.
We only going to the store for items we need now to survive. Besides that we order our stuff online "Sears Catalog", it's loaded onto trucks and planes "railroad", and delivered several days to weeks later.
Aisle D?What aisle were they in?
Rich
My parents told me back in their day the Sears Catalog was also used for something else..... If we go back to that, I hope there are no staples holding the catalog together....