The Retail Apocalypse Has Officially Descended On America
– Business Insider
Thousands of mall-based stores are shutting down in what’s fast becoming one of the biggest waves of retail closures in decades. More than 3,500 stores are expected to close in the next couple of months. Some retailers are exiting the brick-and-mortar business altogether and trying to shift to an all-online model. According to many analysts, the retail apocalypse has been a long time coming in the US, where stores per capita far outnumber that of any other country
– The Robin Report
Seeking ways to cash in on market trends, many consumer-focused companies, like Dollar Shave Club, are embarking on the “Uberization” of retail. This means they’re adding subscription or rental models to provide products and experiences as services. Retailers can transform the way they interact with consumers by providing them with their weekly or monthly consumables as a subscription, simultaneously providing customers with time savings, reducing the risk of price sensitivity, and lowering the cost to serve.
Border Adjustment Tax Could Crush Millions Of Businesses, Retailers Fear
– CNBC
Amid the battle over tax reform, some small businesses that import goods are focused on a key proposal in the House Republican blueprint, the border adjustment tax, which levies a 20 percent tax on imports. One of the most outspoken critics of the proposal has been the National Retail Federation, the world’s largest retail trade organization, which warns that the tax would “crush” small retailers, adding that 99 percent of retail businesses employ fewer than 50 workers and 95 percent of them operate in a single location.
A Pioneer of Humanely Raised Meat Is Betting the Farm on Blue Apron
– The Washington Post
Niman Ranch is synonymous with humanely raised meat. Over the years, customers have included restaurants from Chez Panisse to Chipotle. Niman is preparing for his next, and perhaps his last, act – having sold his boutique cattle and heritage turkey operation to the meal-kit pioneer Blue Apron. Where restaurants and retailers tend to want certain animal cuts – pricey pork loins or rib-eye steaks – Blue Apron can buy the entire animal and write menus to use every piece: pesto meatballs one week for all that ground beef, and steak au poivre the next.