On Fri, 6 Jan 2017 16:01:39 -0600, Leon lcb11211@swbelldotnet wrote:

On 1/6/2017 3:13 PM, Jack wrote:
On 1/6/2017 2:28 PM, Leon wrote:
On 1/6/2017 10:56 AM, Tim Daneliuk wrote:
On 01/05/2017 03:54 PM, Leon wrote:
ears cannot survive at this rate, thank you K-Mart.

This has little to do with K-Mart. These traditional retailers
are getting their lunch handed to them because they did not
adapt to the world of eCommerce in a timely and effective way.

KMart needed extra funds, more money than their spectacular profits
could provide back in the early 90's. They needed funds to offset the
extremely high pension payments that retiring family owners were
collecting. As profitable as it was KMart could not sustain payments to
the owners that were collecting pensions. So you look for a profitable
company to help pay costs that the family members pensions would not
affect. Enter Sears.



Amazon has set the bar very high for very fast delivery, great
pricing, and painless returns ... all from your living room. Some
traditional vendors figured this out. Some - Sears as one example -
did not. They're done for.

Capitalism and markets seek efficiency and punish the lack thereof
mercilessly. Creative Destruction is bad for individual actors,
but good for the marketplace overall.


While all of what you have said plays a factor, the problem started 25
years ago and it was not related to pricing, competition, or product
quality.

I recall buying a sandblaster at a relatively new Sears store about
25/30 years ago. I looked for a salesman to sell me the thing for over
a half our. Finally I somehow found a manager bouncing around and
raised hell with him, asked him how long he thought they would be in
business if no one could find a salesman. Place closed about 3 years
later.

Not every store has a good location or a smart manager. One store does
not reflect the sum of the stores. Remember Woolco? The Woolco store
in Corpus Christi, TX would still be open today if it could have
continued to operate. I worked there when I was going to school. It
was not unusual at all for an ambulance to show up every weekend to haul
some one away. The store was so crowded that people passed out, no
kidding. Woolco was one of the first big stores to close.

Store anagers have very limited power, these days. Their weekly (even
hourly) payrol is often fixed by corporate. Inventory and shelf space
is also often dictated by corporate, even though the store manager may
understand his customers better.




Also, about 2 years ago I needed some shelf brackets. Sears had them
for .79 cents apiece. I asked if they were mis-priced, as they should
be about a nickel each. Found them on line, 25 for $1.49.

You can always find a better deal but there is a price to pay for
getting the product right now vs. tomorrow or later.

I was reading that ACE hardware and Aldi were a couple of brand stores
that are doing well and growing. I went to ACE hardware a month ago to
buy 8 magnetic cabinet door catches. 8 would have cost me $26. I drove
4 miles north and got the 8 catches at HD for $3.

There is one ACE store locally. It's OK but their inventory is often
lacking. They seem to want to sell Green Eggs and accessories, Yeti
coolers, and such, rather than hardware. They do have some _way_
overpriced tools. BTW, the local HD and Lowes hardware sections
aren't any better.


When you have fools running a business, competition will kill you
eventually.


True but there are many more factors the will sink you.