Friday, November 24, 2017
Old-line brick and mortar stores are reeling as they lose sales to online retailers. What will this mean for these venerable stores, for malls, for you? We go shopping for answers on Black Friday.
Retailers are sending out S.O.S. signals - Save Our Stores. Traditional brick and mortar retailers are under siege. Customers are abandoning them, preferring to shop online.
Some traditional retailers find themselves sagging under debt and the number of retailers with "distressed" credit ratings is now the most since the Great Depression. Venerable old-line retailers like Macy's and J.C. Penney are shuttering locations even as online behemoth Amazon has become worth more than the top eight traditional retailers combined.
On this biggest shopping day of the year, Black Friday may be taking on new meaning for some retailers. Despite the fact stores are pulling out the lights and tinsel, the forecast for many is gloomy.
Why is this happening? Why have we fallen out of love with shopping in those consumer palaces known as Shopping Malls? Can brick and mortar stores lure you back? Should shoppers care what happens as long as they're getting what they want at the right price? Mike Collins and guests explore those questions and more.
This show originally aired on March 20, 2017. The Charlotte Talks local news roundup will return next Friday.
Guests
Katie Peralta, retail and business reporter, The Charlotte Observer
Dr. Steven Cox, marketing professor, Queens University of Charlotte
Tiffany Hogan, senior analyst, Kantar Retail
