We’ve all heard it said that the only constant thing about change is more change. And we’ve all noticed the changes that have been going on in the world of shopping.
But the announcement this week by the venerable Sears store chain that it is closing more of its stores including one in El Cajon along with the recent news that Toys R Us is closing all of its stores and going out of business…are vivid reminders of how things are changing.
Shopping on line is changing a lot of things about the whole shopping experience. Taking the kids to Toys R Us to in the weeks before the Christmas season to give them time to see, feel and play with all the toys in one place, is a lot different than swiping through photos of toys on a laptop or smart phone.
But while things are changing, it may be wrong to think that the experience of actually shopping in a store is going away.
A recent article by Forbes listed some signs that stores and not e-commerce are the future of retail.
Among them….the fact that except for Amazon, the top 10 retailers in America are brick and mortar stores. Think Walmart, Target, Home Depot and others. And the fact that in most cases, a store purchase is more profitable for a business than an on-line purchase.
And then there is this: Forbes says that while today’s younger generations like Millennials grew up with Amazon, Facebook, and Instagram, recent studies show that more than 70 percent of them say they actually prefer in-store shopping to digital shopping.
Guess maybe there is still something to be said for the experience of browsing through items in a real store.
By the way, the Sears store at Parkway Plaza in El Cajon is expected to shut its doors for good by sometime in July but liquidation sales were expected to begin by the first of May.
As for ToysRUs, the final day to use their gift cards is April 21, 2018.
(Photo credit Getty Images)