Dawn of the Dead References Will Soon Grow Stale

Yes, Virginia, retail real estate is deadsville. It is not just because of the econoclipse (my preferred term, since recession/depression have precise values, and we can all agree that while we might not meet them, things are baaaaaad) but because of the vast restructuring of the global economy, much of which is to do with technology.

I laughed to read Best Buy described as Big Blue Amazon Showroom, and I may have linked to it before, but it is so true. The best intentions to shop local in the world aside, I cannot justify spending an extra $40.00 at a lighting store when I can get the same exact thing on Amazon. So retail spaces that want to keep their local/brick-and-mortar presence alive need to do one of the following:

Offer an amazing customer experience. I mean 'happy ending' amazing.

Offer products you cannot find online. Aaaaannnnndd good luck with that.

Curate products such that the stories they tell enhance customer's personal narratives

Create a cradle to grave suite of services built AROUND the product/consumer relationship

Learn to adopt and deploy technologies rapidly that can squeeze the juicy information from what customers you do have. "Welcome to my parlor, said the spider to the fly..."

Or, on the opposite end, go so low tech that costs are minimal. Become flexible, pop-up, portable, flash-mobby, resilient.

Meanwhile, I think one of the commenters on Consumerist pointed out the death-spiral commercial landlords enter upon when they engage in a game of chicken with their tenants. Right now, there is nowhere to go but down.