A Case for Euthanasia? Gap on Life Support In 2011, I opened with this salvo: "I don't care how much cash The Gap is sitting on or how much they generate on a daily basis. Just as Sears keeps pumping blood (cash), through its veins, Gap is, and has been for a long time, staying alive on "life support." Essentially, the body (the retail business) is dying, but the nearest and dearest relatives (shareholders and the Board) obviously do not want to pull the proverbial plug. They all stand around the dying patient, hoping for some kind of miracle …
Really Great Advice for Helping the Beauty Industry Survive the Pandemic
Like the rest of us, I've been extremely busy this past few weeks trying to make sense of the New (Coronavirus) World Order. I've had days that have been rendered virtually useless because of anxiety, but then I've had others that have been much, much better. Those are the days when I've gotten out of my own muddled head, plunked myself in front of my computer monitor and attended one of the many excellent free webinars the beauty industry has recently been doling out like perfume samples. I've watched the founders of Glow Recipe, a …
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Good News, Bad News Times for Off-Price Retailers
For off-price stores it is a Dickensian Dilemma: the best of times and the worst of times. When physical stores start to reopen over the next few weeks and months, the nation's off-price retailers will have access to more merchandise than perhaps at any time in their history. And they will be able to buy much of it at just a fraction of its cost. Feeding frenzy would not be too strong a phrase to use. But at the same time, they will be greeted by a shopping population that more than ever has embraced e-commerce for virtually …
Consumers Lead Industry Transformation
Unprecedented business closures, an intermittent supply chain and unemployment reaching 26.5M as of April, have put the retail ecosystem at significant risk. Compared to the 2007-2008 financial crisis, the extent and duration of today's situation is profound. There is a significant shift underway in how we shop for food and essential goods that will fundamentally change retail. Grocers, convenience stores and mass merchandisers who can react to consumers' needs, navigate environmental constraints and swiftly adjust their operations are …
What the World Needs Now Is Great Leadership
There are a multitude of leaders around the world, by title only. There is a scarcity of great leaders. The same applies in the retail ecosystem. The United States has been the de facto leader of the "free world" since the end of WWII. However, we are arguably witnessing its demise in real time (some would say over the last three years). In title only, we have a leader, but in my opinion, he is the opposite of "great," and in many ways endangering the country. However, this article is not about politics and the performance of our current …
Five Forces Shaping Retail’s Post-Pandemic Future
This is a precarious time for all retailers, but particularly those deemed non-essential: Inventories are piled up and on-orders slashed; relationships with suppliers, landlords and employees are fraught; cash is scarce and the timelines for stores opening and customers responding are murky. Many, if not most, are focused only on short-term survival. Multiple Scenarios As we plan for the post-pandemic future, we'd do best to plan for multiple possible scenarios. For over a decade now, we assumed steady consumer spending growth, some jockeying …
Gen Z Has Been Prepping for Coronavirus All Their Lives
Funny thing about Generation Z/iGen consumers: they always shopped as if they were preparing for a cataclysmic global event. Gen Z grew up during the Great Recession and watched their parents and millennial siblings struggle to make ends meet with little to nothing put away in savings. Harsh inevitabilities about how global warming would play out during their lifetimes also made an impact on Gen Z's purchasing behavior, leading to the pursuit of sustainability over status (to the great dismay of many a legacy brand). Gen Z was often accused …
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PostPan Generational Reflections
At 10:00 in the evening as I sit in my West Village garden, the city is remarkably quiet. There is a dusting of white pear tree blossom petals everywhere. No jets passing over, the sirens are a distant wail in my deserted neighborhood. It is as if 150 years has disappeared. It hasn't. Next Gen Angst For my GenZ 19-year-old this is a cataclysmic time. It is the first time in her adult memory the broader world has intruded on her life, uninvited. Her college sent her home. Her physical isolation is profound. And while Zoom gatherings are a …