Shopping in stores like Target, Macy’s has become a miserable experience

https://www.vox.com/money/23831438/shopping-retail-theft-target-walmart-macys-losses

by ohjeez • 3 years ago

5 2 3 years ago

Shopping is definitely a dismal thing. And I can name two things that have ruined it. Well, actually, they're the same thing.

Online shopping has obviously made a huge dent, ("dent" is a charitable word) in brick-and-mortar shopping. I think that most stores have pivoted from placing their best foot forward for the discerning customer, to basically being last-chance, inefficient warehouses of crap that people won't purchase online. It's become common knowledge now that if you really want something, and you want good quality, then you stay home and you purchase it on the Web, and deal with the hassles of waiting, shipping, and returns at home.

I've actually got a theory that there are "ghost stores"; they are retail stores of well-known name and repute, often on blighted properties, that sell nothing but unwanted merchandise. It may look attractive on the shelf, but it's always the wrong size, an unfashionable style or color, or it's been discontinued and you'll never find parts for it. There's a Big 5 nearby that perfectly fits this description, and every time I go shopping there I have an absurd creepy feeling, like any purchase is a mistake.

Furthermore, brick-and-mortar stores have become hangouts for independent online vendors who are practicing arbitrage. This really got noticed during the pandemic. Those people shopping in those stores are not really customers. They are sellers who are building their inventory. Other times, they are shoppers who are there on behalf of an online customer who is ordering delivery. It's rather ridiculous if you imagine that most of the people occupying a given store at any given time are not the end-customers anymore, but that's just a fact of life now.

Given both of the above related factors, most stores don't really need to offer a pleasant or enjoyable customer shopping experience anymore, they just need to show people merchandise that they can grab off the shelves and hopefully make a transaction before running out the door.

ohjeez• 3 years ago

As you say, the independent stores found a sweet spot. Compare the success of independent bookshops to the big chains like Barnes & Noble. The former are inherently browsable; you know you'll find something interesting, even if you have no idea what it'll be. And they draw you in with events like book-signings.

Mostly, I think the big retail industry stopped innovating the (cough) shopping "experience." They put more attention on helping people find things they are actively looking for ("I need a blue left-hand widget") than encouraging serendipity.

Both things can exist in parallel. I find myself comparing in-person retail shopping to sports. You absolutely can get a more comfortable sportball experience sitting on your couch, with cheaper beer and immediate analysis. But in baseball, for instance, the teams have done a lot to encourage people to attend games... not because one is better than the other, but because they are interestingly different.

Shopping in stores like Target, Macy’s has become a miserable experience

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