The department store thread

The Motley Fool writer Rich Duprey is not optimistic about the future of two big department-store chains:

Which will die first, Sears or J.C. Penney?

https://www.aol.com/article/finance/...nney/23281177/

Does Santa now have a secretary and business manager?

Macy's flagship store in New York City is requiring children to have an appointment to see Santa this year

http://www.businessinsider.com/macys...-santa-2017-11

Bloomberg writer Sarah Halzack said today, "No category of retail seems to be feeling pain quite as much as department stores. Macy's saw its comparable sales sink 4 percent from a year earlier. JC Penney took a loss as it moved to unload apparel inventory that just wasn't selling. Kohl's said it struggled to sell clothes amid unseasonably warm weather. It all reflected a trend that has been clear for some time now: Department stores are in decline." In a short video, she explains that Amazon is far from the only reason department stores are suffering:

Amazon and other e-commerce businesses are not the only department store threats

https://www.bloomberg.com/gadfly/art...e-threat-video

Target stores are always remodeling and adding new displays but the Sears and Penneys stores look the same as they looked 40 years ago. Especially Sears.

These are rough times for any store not named Target or Walmart.

J.Crew to close 50 stores as third-quarter sales plunge 12%

http://fortune.com/2017/11/21/jcrew-stores-results/

Here is an interesting story from today's Los Angeles Times. Amidst the steady rise in online shopping, Sears, Toys Я Us and other chains are once again sending out catalogues -- real ones, printed on real paper!

The old-fashioned mail-order catalog is making a comeback

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-f...123-story.html

A three-year, very costly project is underway in Knightsbridge, London:

Harrods begins £200m refurbishment, the biggest in the department store’s 170-year history

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/...rtment-stores/

I said Sears never remodels their stores but I was wrong. The North Hollywood store has been remodeled. It's a lot smaller now but they put in new floors and an elevator. A lot of Sears stores are closing but I'm sure they won't close the North Hollywood store.

So someone thinks lynchings are something to joke about? Wow.

'Rope. Tree. Journalist. Some assembly required': Walmart removes threatening shirt from website following complaint from journalist advocacy group

http://www.time.com/5044596/rope-tre...d-threatening/

As Walmart shifts away from building new stores and focuses on competing with online giant Amazon, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is shortening its name to Walmart Inc.

Wal-Mart's new name: It's not just a store anymore

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/compa...D=ansmsnnews11

Many people do all their shopping online and get clothes, electronics, books, music, movies, groceries and restaurant food delivered to their home -- and then complain that there's an "obesity epidemic." *Sigh*

Target to buy grocery delivery startup Shipt for $550 million in challenge to Amazon

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articl...e-day-delivery

Business Insider calls Walmart vs. Amazon "the clash of the titans."

Walmart and Amazon's long-simmering feud exploded in 2017 — and it's redefining retail
Business Insider, Dec 15 2017

Amazon and Walmart competed more fiercely in 2017 than ever before. It has quickly become the biggest feud in retail — and possibly all of business. With all the new features that have been unveiled, consumers are the clear winners.

http://www.businessinsider.com/walma...e-year-2017-12

This sounds like something from an old episode of The Jetsons but it's actually from Forbes' website:

Retail's store of the future: brand-free customization and tech-free service with a human touch

http://www.forbes.com/sites/barbarat.../#163216bb5a32

Shoplifters who were caught could avoid criminal prosecution by paying a fee and taking a course on retail theft -- but no longer:

Walmart drops in-house punishment for shoplifters

http://www.upi.com/top_news/us/12/22...2831513972935/

Families used to play Monopoly, Scrabble, Clue and The Game Of Life. How low we've sunk!

Target recalls Jewish-themed 'Cards Against Humanity' game over offensive content
JTA, Dec 29 2017 7:01 AM

Target is recalling a Jewish-themed version of a card game that features offensive content. The popular and intentionally offensive Cards Against Humanity game asks players to compete for the funniest or least appropriate answer to a fill-in-the-blank question. Cards in the "Chosen People Pack" version were flagged on social media in recent days for prompts such as "The Jews are behind everything — the banks, the media, even _____!" and an answer reading "Torturing Jews until they say they aren’t Jews anymore."

A Target spokesperson said, "We are removing this extended card pack from our stores. We apologize for any disappointment as it is never our intention to offend our guests with the products we carry." A "Jew Pack" set of cards is still available on the game maker’s website, which describes the game as "a party game for horrible people. Unlike most of the party games you’ve played before, Cards Against Humanity is as despicable and awkward as you and your friends."

https://www.jta.org/2017/12/29/news-...ensive-content

A growing number of young Americans are shunning the huge malls and shopping for clothing and accessories online and at independent boutiques. Credit Suisse estimates that one-fourth of America's malls will close by 2022. Women's Wear Daily writer Misty White Sidell offers an analysis of why malls are dying -- and what could save them:

How the mall, once a pop-culture touchstone, fell out of fashion

http://www.latimes.com/fashion/la-ig...229-story.html

It's tempting to blame Amazon for the closures of so many stores -- but Amazon had nothing to do with the demise of Mervyns, Circuit City, Montgomery Ward, Fashion Bug, Gottschalks, Thom McAn, Kinney Shoes, Rexall Drug, Chief Auto Parts and F.W. Woolworth. (That was me being "the voice of reason.")

More than 3,600 stores will close in 2018
Business Insider, Dec 31 2017

The record-high rate of store closures that rocked the retail industry this year is expected to spill into 2018, with more than 3,600 closures already on tap for next year. Walgreens, Payless, Gap, Ann Taylor, Rue 21 and Toys Я Us are among the many retailers expected to shutter hundreds of stores. Some companies' closures will take effect immediately, such as Sears and Kmart, which plan to close a total of 63 stores in January. Other closures are already underway and could last several months before completion.

The list of expected closures: http://www.businessinsider.com/store...n-2018-2017-12

The Justice Department might try to block such a move by Amazon: "Yesterday, Whole Foods. Today, Target. Tomorrow, the world! Nyah-ha-haaa!"

Analyst Gene Munster thinks Amazon could buy Target this year

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/compa...D=ansmsnnews11

Macy's announces 5,000 job cuts, more store closures

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/compa...D=ansmsnnews11

I posted a story December 30 -- Go look! -- about the increasing unpopularity of shopping malls. Here is a related story. Almost 2,500 mall stores, including Hallmark, Bebe, Subway, MasterCuts and Stride Rite, went out of business in 2017 and this year may be equally dismal.

Shopping malls continue downward spiral as smaller stores quietly disappear

http://www.foxbusiness.com/features/...tly-disappear/