Posted on 03/22/2017 7:08:12 AM PDT by Red Badger
More store closings are coming to Staples.
A shopper departs a Staples store September 29, 2005 in Mount Prospect, Illinois. (Credit: Tim Boyle/Getty Images)
On Thursday, the office supply store reported a $548 million loss and a 3% drop in sales in the fiscal fourth quarter that ended in January.
Those results prompted Staples to say it would close 70 more stores, or 4.5% of its 1,600 remaining locations, during the current fiscal year. It closed 48 stores last year and has shuttered about 350 stores over the last five years.
The retailer tried to merge with rival Office Depot, but that deal was blocked by the Federal Trade Commission a year ago.
The store closings were partly responsible for the drop in sales, but the company also suffered a 1% sales decline at stores open at least a year.
Traditional brick-and-mortar stores have been under pressure for some time due to greater online competition from online outfits such as Amazon. Hundreds of store closings have been announced so far this year.
Staples joins a growing list of big retailers that are shutting stores, which includes both Sears and its subsidiary Kmart, Macy’s, JCPenney and Abercrombie & Fitch.
On Wednesday evening RadioShack filed for bankruptcy for the second time in two years, announcing it would close 200 of its 1,500 stores and placing the future of the remaining stores in doubt.
In addition, Sears Holdings has announced plans to close 150 Sears and Kmart stores, JCPenney said it will close 140 stores and Macy’s announced it is closing 68 stores and cutting 10,000 jobs. The Limited also announced in January it would close its remaining stores.
Our local Mall is about 1/3 empty stores now. It used to be crowded and all store fronts were occupied. Now it is mostly teens congregating at the food court and elderly people out for their walks......................
This is why there has to be that economic balance.
I'm thinking 3D printers, when they're as common as microwave ovens are today.
Now it is mostly teens congregating at the food court and elderly people out for their walks...
That can’t go on...
Staples has been empty for the past 30 years. How do they stay alive? Do they sell drugs?
Lord willin' and the crick don't rise.
In my area, Office Depot already merged with OfficeMax.
I have only been to Staples twice in last 6 years, 4 times in last 9 or 10 years. Why make Romney richer when there are Dollar stores and online shopping with same products at 70% to 80% less cost?
We’re through, you and I.
North Korea/South Korea.
Japan/China
The US/Iran
US/Russia/Iraq vs. ISIS
Those are NOTHING, NOTHING compared to the war between ebay people and amazon people.
And it won’t be pretty.
If I wasn’t afraid you could beat me up I’d track you down.
Tough day for the brick & mortar businesses.
Tough day for the brick & mortar businesses with bad management.................
I remember driving past the very first Staples store and wondering what it was.
Seems like yesterday.
.
We have Office Depot. The nearest Staples is 35 miles................
Exactly! I only go there when my kids have a project due and we need supplies and can’t wait for amazon prime to deliver.
#Amazon
Oh my, how true. We used to have a small family owned store in town called Southern Office Supply. It was analogous to an old fashioned hardware store. It carried all kinds of of odds and ends that you don't see anymore. Most everything was sold in bulk, and if you wanted one pencil, and 5 sheets of typing paper, you could get just that. Then the Staples and Office Depots came along and put them out of business.
However, when you go to Staples to buy a Sharpie, or a pencil, you can't buy just one. They make you buy a pack of 6, 7, 8, or more. What am I going to do with 8 Sharpies? And if they sell lesser quantities, there isn't even much price difference. A pack of six pens for $6.98, or if you want only one, $4.59. I stopped going to Staples a couple years ago and now buy all my piddly supplies at Dollar Tree.
The irony of the death throes of stores like Staples and Sears is that these stores in their hey day “replaced” a lot of small family owned local businesses. Now they are being “replaced” by on-line retailers like Amazon. One wonders what “bigger fish” will replace Amazon some day....
...
Star Trek replicators would be my guess.
I was a member of eBay for 17 years. My loyalty was rewarded last year by eBay siding with a "power seller" vendor who sent me mostly dead annual flowers to plant in my garden. Despite photos clearly showing the inferior half dead plants, the seller only offered to send new plants if I paid shipping. No way was I going to do that. EBay sided with the seller AND deleted my negative feedback on him. I found out, by doing research why. EBay receives a cut of every sale on its website. If there was too much negative feedback on sellers, especially their "power sellers", people wouldn't buy and they wouldn't get any money from the sale. Thus, they protect their power sellers by taking their part in disputes (despite their totally BS claim of "buyer protection" AND by deleting negative feedback you write on them.
No more eBay for me! They are a bunch of thieves.
I have had no problems with EBay. Had a problem with Amazon. Look, every business will have its share of problems.
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