The NewYorkTimes reported that unemployment is 7.2%, a 16 year high. Not good. Another report came in that something like 73,000 retail venues may be closing down. Definitely not good. So what’s going on here?
Over breakfast, a group of us were discussing the economic dowtunr. No doubt it is affecting everything from the financial and housing industries to manufacturing and media. The reail business is getting killed. And as the country awaits all the stimulus packages to take effect, we wonder if there is any end in sight.
But then to some degree I started thinking about some of the underlying causes for the downturn. Sure eveyrone looks at housing and banking, and there is that soon-to-be-annoying chestunut from Wall Street to Main Street. but is that it, really. Yeah, well to some degree.
But the fact is we don’t really make much anymore. Whoever heard of a world power lacking in its manufacutring capacity? Perhaps it is time to rethink the paradigm of our being a service based and consumer based economy. Perhaps this is a foolish way to look at things.
With respect to all the retail venues that are closing, one has to ask if we really needed them all. They all carry the same brands. You have the high line stuff, the mid line stuff and the economy stuff. So, since most venues do not really present anything unique or novel, perhaps it is small wonder that some of the stores are closing. It is an ecoonmic downturn, after all, and shoopers are buying less. the might as well buy less at fewer stores.
Since people don’t have much money, the common thread I hear is why do I need more of what I already have? Good point. Not only are people broke, but they are bored with buying the same stuff they already have in their kitchens, closets or everywhere else. If there is anything to ween the consumer habit, it is no money and nothing new to buy.
Perhaps it is time that retail venues look for original designers. Domestic designers would be nice. Domestic manufacturers that could deliver quality in short time by virtue of it not having to travel over the water. It has worked for the premium jeans world, so why not for other things?
Companies could open retail venues and hire people who understand specialties and quality. retial staff that are knowledgable about their inventory and who can actually provide services. We could reclaim old factories and use them to manufacture the type of goods you can’t find in the department stores or the big box stores. Stuff that is creative and built to last.
We could re-purpose a lot of our unemployed and train our growing amount of high school and college dropouts to learn trades and artisan skills. They would service niche markets. Everything is so segmented anyway, so why not? At least the retailers could have something different to sell.
A pipe dream? Maybe. but an interesting one, nevertheless.
