THE COLLAPSE OF THE MARKET PLACE

Everyone is querying whose fault it is for the close-down of retail outlets and the rapid growth of boarded-up windows on once thriving premises. Villages and towns are an eyesore these days and I wish something could be done to stop the spread. So, I ask again, whose fault is it?

There are two main reasons, high rents and the Internet. Rents can’t be paid if sales are not forthcoming and the more we buy on-line the more shops have to close.

Shoppers now purchase goods from the Internet rather than the marketplace and I can’t really blame them. It is something I do a lot simply because retailers are not offering me what I want. I can spend hours looking round for a particular item, without success, yet I can always find that item on line ... usually at Amazon ... in double quick time. Thus, Joe Public is driven away from shops while the shops blame the Internet for their demise. It’s a bit chicken and egg, don’t you think?

picture courtesy of http://www.smh.com.au

Towards the end of last year, I think it was November, I wanted to buy a new coat. To my mind November is a month that warrants warmer clothes and certainly one’s mind is more attuned to the coming winter than the recent summer. Joe and I nearly walked the leather off our shoes looking for a suitable garment, one that would suit ME and not make me look like a teenager. I did find one, but it took a long time. It seemed that November was not considered an appropriate month to buy coats yet by Christmas time there were hundreds to choose from.  As it turned out I didn’t need to look on-line but the point is that in general the shops were not geared to my requirements.

We recently lost Comet, a large company specialising in electrical goods, televisions, refrigerators, washing machines, phones, dishwashers, etc. It was said that its downfall was caused by not embracing Internet sales.  Already I miss that store and seeing the empty property as I drive by is disturbing.

Then there came the collapse of Jessops, huge in the field of cameras. This came at a time when I was looking to buy a new camera and needed expert advice. I ask you, how does one get expert advice on the Internet, man-to-man, question and answer? How does one get the feel of a camera by looking at pictures?

Having said all that I admit that the Internet is remarkable. I hear you can even buy spectacles on-line. That’s not for me though, when I buy new specs I try on several before making a choice. Some suit, some don’t. We’re all different. The dispenser at my local optical services shop is qualified to measure ... could anyone reading this measure their own face, or the distance required for reading?

One piece of good news heard on the radio was that those stores who operate order-on-line-with-collection-from-store came up with that idea in order to get people back in the stores. Great managerial thinking but it won't save the small shops.