Photo: SoundbeatMedia

In Cassandra’s blog post regarding online shopping becoming a threat to retail stores, she highlights the problem malls are facing and what they should do to compete with online shopping. Although the growth in popularity of online shopping is prevalent, I believe the reinvention to maintain consistent retail sales lies in the hands of retailers, not malls. Cassandra suggests malls should focus on the overall shopping experience for a customer by providing more venues for movies and dining, and although this does create a more friendly and sociable environment for us, most malls already do offer these features.

Online shopping has become a norm, and I notice myself also shopping through the click of a few buttons from time to time. But my main reason is not due to how comfortable it is to stay at home. It’s because I end up ordering products online due to the lack of, or different inventory offered in stores. When I visit a store hoping to buy something I saw on its website, I’m often disappointed by the fact that this item can’t even be found. Companies are seeing a decline in sales in retail stores because more and more of them do not keep their in-store inventory up to date with their online catalog. 

Expanding store inventory to precisely match online catalogs would most definitely hike up a company’s costs to maintain its retail stores, but I can understand why many retailers are concerned. If its online sales do not make up or surpass the success of its retail stores, then it might be wise for companies to take a look into their operations, and see whether the wide variety of items offered online are helping or hurting their success.