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Thread: I wonder if our large dept stores will go this way

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    Default I wonder if our large dept stores will go this way



    If we keep supporting the Amazons and other online stores there will be no department stores left to try on gear and buy online! I don't really know what the answer is. I live in a regional town and I do try and support local but sometimes the price gap is too large!

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    I buy locally if I can. I use local tradies and businesses if I can. By local I mean LOCAL, as in nearby.

    Computer and tech gear not so much.
    The fact that there's a highway to hell and a stairway to heaven says a lot about the anticipated traffic flow.

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    Today:

    Motorcycle battery
    Local : $120
    EBay: 59.95 delivered from Melbourne with bonus trickle charger.

    Autel truck diagnostic computer:

    Local - Perth: $6500
    EBay USA : $4105 delivered.

    That's just ridiculous......



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    Dept stores will always be around , just not as big as they used to be. Look at butthurts like Coles - they cry poor and want regulations changed to allow them to move chemists into thier stores and once that happens the local chemists will go broke and Coles will control that market too.

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    Perhaps Sears didn't move with the times
    That is a lot of debt they had

    The guy that turned Kmart in AU around has done an amazing job, they are booming.

    Department Stores like Myre in AU i often wonder about, at least they own blue chip property in CBD's

    I guess Leroy, you could ask yourself where your money has gone the last 15 years?
    What percentage was spent in department stores?

    Seems the big thing now is the DFO, they are everywhere
    And prices seem no different to retail

    There is also the other side to Kmarts success:


    But, as we as consumers are doing exactly he same with individual purchases, i don't see the problem.

    It is more a shame that our local quality products are being priced out of business

    I find this interesting

    Last edited by ol' boy; 16-10-18 at 08:47 AM.
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    Quote Originally Posted by VroomVroom View Post
    Dept stores will always be around , just not as big as they used to be. Look at butthurts like Coles - they cry poor and want regulations changed to allow them to move chemists into thier stores and once that happens the local chemists will go broke and Coles will control that market too.
    Exactly!
    They have had this predatory pricing model for a long time and been caught out repeatedly trying to get rid of the small Fruit and veg places. They mark produce down below cost, make out they are the cheapest and when the little guy a few shops over in the centre can't absorb the losses any more they have the business to themselves and stick the prices up where they want. It's relay easy to see how tough and hard the big players are doing it, just look at their quarterly financial statements and see how many millions profit they made.

    I was in coles yesterday and stood out the front waiting for the mrs. I noted the amount of bags people were getting and that I only saw 1 person with their own bag. I laughed to myself thinking yeah, like they didn't see that coming..... MUCH! Mrs and I went out originally to go do something else. while we were out we went to bunnings and as usual, walked out spending $220 instead of the 20 we went there for then decided we'd have some lunch at the shopping centre while we were out then May as well pick up a few things while we are here at the supermarket. No intention initially to go there and didn't take any bags with us. More often than not, that's what Happens when I go there... much as I try to avoid it.

    Also noticed that the green grocers seemed to put every item in it's own full size carry bag and the butchers gave them out as well as the various frock shops and everyone else.
    Yep, the supermarkets have really cut down on the rivers full of plastic bags..... we are still waiting to see example pics of.


    I wonder if sears had an online division and they promoted that in any way? Seems ironic to me that a company that had Catalogue sales as such an important part of it's success can't make a go in the modern age of online which is the Modern catalogue equivalent. I really don't buy the " Internet is killing us" thing with these failed businesses. If that were the case every other business in the same market would be falling over as well but they are not. Often these companies fail to adapt and change and that is the biggest killer of any enterprise.
    Might be that the CEO tried a lot of things but it was just too late to overcome their problems. Sometimes loosing your grip means you can never get it back the same as toppling the dominant force in a market would cost more than it's worth if you did manage it.

    I agree with what others have said about price differences online and retail. I have found that myself. Some companies I do not know how they stay trading. Jaycar is one. Shopped with them for years and love the place. Always had great service and got a good vibe from them. Spent endless hours coming through their catalogues as well.
    Thing is, only time I can justify going there now is in a virtual emergency where I need something fast.
    Last year I bought something, forget what now but I DO remember the online price I paid for the SAME Item was $12.xx. Jaycars price was $81. People can go on about supporting local business all they like but my first priority is supporting my family and when there is that much of a price difference, it would be irresponsible of me to pay that much of an excessive difference for some moral feel good position.

    Nearly everything they sell is chinese imported products and can be had much cheaper online... probably often from their suppliers. I more than understand they have staff and warehouses, rents and an endless list of expenses and I do feel for them HOWEVER, my responsibility is to my family first and foremost, not to ensure the profits and dividends to stock holders of a company.

    On the flip side to the online sales " Problem" I bought a new printer online last week..... From office works. No local store within an hour of me had the unit I wanted but I was able to buy it online and get it delivered next day at no extra cost. Had I got in a bit earlier it could have been on the doorstep same day but next day and saving me at least 2.5 hours getting the thing was great. That's adapting to the market and competition. I imagine they would be doing VERY well from that. Why send someone out to get office supplies when they can sit at their desk, maybe still answering phones and greeting customers as they do it and have the stuff delivered FREE? Sending someone to the store makes no sense.

    Same as when I was in coles. I saw this woman walking round with a computerised Trolley. Mrs said it was for the online orders. She was doing their " shopping" for them.
    Said someone she works with does that part time and gets paid very well for it so the thing of taking jobs away falls flat there, it's created a job. I asked Mrs what does it cost and she didn't know. I said if it means I don't have to come to a supermarket, it's worth it if they charge double to me!

    Same as a friends Son. Works for a Courier company in the ware house. HUGE part of their business is online sales and they have trouble filling the positions they have. Sure there may be a few less shops around but I would have doubts about less jobs. They have just moved from perhaps the retail market to the delivery sector.

    It's always easy to put blame on something else these days, it's almost a requirement but often the excuses are undermined by just looking at what the guy next door is doing and how he is going.

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    Well, I certainly wouldn't be crying if Harvey Norman went broke, in fact I would consider it poetic justice....
    Cheers
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    Quote Originally Posted by Al Bundy View Post
    Well, I certainly wouldn't be crying if Harvey Norman went broke, in fact I would consider it poetic justice....
    But where else would you go to see and try out stuff before you shop elsewhere?
    The fact that there's a highway to hell and a stairway to heaven says a lot about the anticipated traffic flow.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Al Bundy View Post
    Well, I certainly wouldn't be crying if Harvey Norman went broke, in fact I would consider it poetic justice....
    Agreed, but as he has stores in Malaysia, Singapore, Croatia, Ireland, Slovenia, New Zealand, he seems to be doing ok
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    I try and buy local where I can, but. My nearest major outlet is a 3/4 an hour away. I needed brushes for my drill, and a few other things that I could not get locally. Got only two things that I needed.e The brushes, well, they have to order them in be a few days, $18 part, forget it, I'll order on line. $9 delivered. Otherwise I'g be up for another hour and a half driving, not to mention petrol and paying twice the price for the privilege.
    Our local IGA is always busy. Sadly there are only a few businesses in our town, so we have to head into the "big smoke" to get, even, petrol.
    I'm out of my mind, but feel free to leave a message...

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    And that's what I'm talking about when the price gap is too large. I wouldn't pay double for a motorbike battery either! The big companies get crazy shipping deals from aust post etc. The little guy struggles to compete on that from as well.

    K-Mart is an interesting one now. I find everything there is almost the same cheap crap you buy on ebay. I remember when it sold quality goods.

    But quality goods are disappearing. Look at Bunnings.

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    I don't really remember K-mart selling quality stuff, it was always the cheap end of town.
    I do find Kmart is great option now when looking for items you might find in Super Cheap Auto or Bunnings..... WD-40, Silicon Spray, Armor All, etc
    Much cheaper than Bunnings or SCA for the exact same product.

    Simple camping items, butane gas cans are also cheaper at K-mart.

    Those stores like Myer and David Jones make me wonder, i guess the later has Woolworths to write off their loses

    Myer, well..... That will be my next predication for either, reinvention or closure!

    Maybe there is room for a new spin on the old department store?
    There certainly was with supermarkets, ALDI sure filled that spot in a great hurry

    For 2018 fiscal year, online retail trading has only accounted for 7% of all retail spending in Australia.
    So that is 93% of retail trading through traditional stores.

    Perhaps the online surge has not quite been what everyone thought it would be? "The great store killer", that never happened.
    And lets not forget, that of the 7% online sales for 2018, a majority proportion would be through already traditional stores with an online presence, JB Hi-Hi, SCA, Repco, Flight Centre, etc as examples.

    But as for the traditional department stores... as in a store with different department, that is so old school and dead!!!!!
    (Maybe Kmart, Big W and Target is an exception, but i don't really call them department stores)
    I think Westfield changed that game with Shopping Malls, where each store can have its own identity, branding, advertising and presence.

    If you are still trying to play Department Store in this day and age, then you're still burning coal, using a phone book and taking your toaster to the repair man to get fixed.

    Bricks and Motor has its place, it offers a shopping experience, one on one chat, instant comparing, coffee and meet up, etc
    Online is fantastic for re-purchasing an item, something where you know exactly what you want and just hunt for the cheapest price.
    Last edited by ol' boy; 16-10-18 at 01:56 PM.
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    Every second small store these days seems to be owned by a big store. I have 5 IGA stores within a 5k radius of me, 4 are totally crap and the last one is passable only because it's huge and has a good deli section. All 5 you have to check the use by date on everything. I really regret that years of poor decisions by all governments have left us with basically a duopoly on essential goods, and soon, essential services.

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    The irony is years ago catalogues and the sales there through were a big thing. That sort of went out with big shopping centres and now it's come full circle with online. it's the same as catalogues only the modern equivalent. It's nothing new at all.

    I was just looking at some articles on sears. They do not have an online presence. That's manically in my book ( and a lot of other peoples) when this brand had a huge reputation for catalogues and non personal shoppers. Also seems that the brands and lines they carried had changed and were not well received for at least a decade and they did away with a lot of their own brands that were very profitable.
    I'm also seeing numerous reports many of their stores were run down and uninviting.

    You hear of these failures and there is always blame leveled else where but it does not take much to put the claims under a bit of scrutiny and find holes in them.

    For 2018 fiscal year, online retail trading has only accounted for 7% of all retail spending in Australia.
    So that is 93% of retail trading through traditional stores.
    That is a very significant and important fact.
    We are lead these days to believe online is taking over but that shows that it is nothing like it's ( typically) hyped up to be. I would think, as much as we tend to get online with delivery's nearly every day in this house, that 7% figure would be right in the ball park. A lot of what we buy is cheap, low dollar items so although we might get a bunch of delivery's a week, I doubt My buying $5 worth of Voltage regulator boards and 20 10A diodes is really doing much to the local retailers not my Daughters buying cheap Jewelery or the Mrs buying Novelties for the dog.

    Compared to what they particularly spend a week in the shopping centres, the online value is nothing.

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    Quote Originally Posted by george65 View Post
    The irony is years ago catalogues and the sales there through were a big thing. That sort of went out with big shopping centres and now it's come full circle with online. it's the same as catalogues only the modern equivalent. It's nothing new at all. .
    I remember the catalogues well, i used to subscribe to many from America, they came in the mail like a window to a world we just couldn't have here in AU

    You could buy all manner of things, people were buying pistols and cross bows and having them shipped directly to them
    Long before customs and parcel inspection caught up.
    There were no "Can't ship to this or that Country" rules, it was a free for all
    If anything, it was worse then than it is now, only the volume of sales wasn't there, so it all flew under the radar.

    Until it made the news that people were actually buying hand guns via the mail.
    If u want to go on an expedition get a Land Rover, if u want to come home from an expedition get a Landcruiser!

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