Retail is Dead
Yeah I know the title is boombastic and kinda put some burden on this entry (because this post is not that serious after all). I’ve just been thinking about this WalMart craze all over the US and hypermarket craze (carrefour, etc) throughout the world. Practically they are killing small shop owners with their power to bargain the distributor with the lowest price.
However, smaller distributor might just cut out and win the competition (if they are smart enough actually). By cutting the overhead cost of running the shop, small shop owners can actually compete with the low price WalMart and BestBuy can provide. How? By using the internet.
More and more people are using the internet and more and more people are using it to buy stuffs online. In not so distant future, I believe that more people will go to WalMart not to buy things but to look up for new products or take time for leasure (also known as window shopping — where you don’t actually buy, only seeing around).
More and more part of the sales will directed towards online sales and here’s where the small guys can take his place. By closing physical stores alltogether, they can cut the significant cost down to pretty much zero. Then they can convert some small and cheap warehouse not far from their neighborhood to store most-wanted goods that their customer buys on daily basis (just in case).
Then the customers can simply type in the store’s online address and buy their groceries online. No need to go to WalMart, easy and convenient and just with the same low price that they can provide.
What do you think? Can the small guys really cut it out?
