[cstreit]

Wards went out of business quite some time ago without the hand wringing.

THe face of retail has changed, whether that be instant price shopping using your cell phone or the "Buy anywhere, pickup/deliver anywhere" mentality that consumers have - it will never be the same. Many companies were not prepared to deal with it and are paying the consequence.

The "Amazon effect" is putting on severe pressure as well. IN short - they got complacent and are now paying the price. The advantage they have is "Brick and Mortar" stores where you can put your hands on the merchandise before you buy. ...but the overhead is tremendous.

Huge rewards for the companies that figure this out. Were I a CEO in the space - I would figure out how I complete against amazon or lower their 10-15% cut of every sale. That is the entire margin for many retailers.