Speaking to CNBC, analyst Jan Kniffen pointed to Macy’s, which this week reported its worst sequential same-store sales decline since the financial crisis, as evidence that American retailers are throwing away money on bricks-and-mortar stores that aren’t succeeding.
“On an apples-to-apples basis, we have twice as much per-capita retail space as any other place in the world,” explained Kniffen, a formed Senior VP and Treasurer with The May Company. “We are the most over-stored place in the world.”
He contends that Macy’s could shed around 300 (38%) of its current 800 retail locations. That’s significantly more than a recent estimate from Green Street Advisors, who said Macy’s would only need to shed around 72 stores to return to its pre-bubble productivity levels.
The sad state of American anchor stores will also translate into dark days for all malls, predicts Kniffen. By his estimate, more than one-in-three enclosed shopping malls in the U.S. will fail in the years to come. Of those that don’t die quickly, only around one-third will thrive.
On the plus side: Think of all the cool skating and parkour videos that will be shot in the abandoned malls.
by Chris Morran via Consumerist
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