Killing Retail

Recently, I stopped by at Micheal's to see if I could find a garden-variety planner for the new year. I was in the area, the need for a planner came to mind so I stepped in. This is not a store I frequent but have visited over the years - specially when J was still in school and needs would arise for various projects. I was struck by the the lack of variety in the assortment in just about every aisle. There used to be a lot more to choose from no matter what you were looking for. Maybe they do more business online these days. 

I did not end up finding the planner that met my needs. The shoe store in the same strip-mall was my next stop - again had a very basic requirement that just about any shoe store could fulfill. Was struck by the pricing in the clearance aisles. A remarkable story of decline over the last few visits I have made to this store. Used to be that the clearance items were a good value and often the shelves were half empty. Now everything was fully stocked and the prices made absolutely no sense. 

When I read about the next thing Amazon wants to do to make a for a friction-less buying experience, I have to wonder if a decade down the road what it would take for brick and mortar retail to exist.