Financial Times: Retailers Fragile and Exposed in a Cold Climate
Rise in insolvencies and restructuring a sign of deteriorating outlook, say analysts
“We’ve found that a lot of parents hate going to the toy store because it’s a place where arguments will happen, they lose control of their budget and their children.”
BY MARK VANDEVELDE
Michele Chang-McGrath talked to the FT's retail editor, Mark Vandevelde, about the recent woes of retailers:
“The likes of Maplin and Toys R Us were stuck [thinking that] the role they were playing for consumers was being there as a warehouse giving choice and convenience,” says Michele Chang-McGrath, a partner at ReD Associates, which studies consumers’ in-store behaviour.
“Tracking down niche toys is now a function better performed by Amazon than speciality big-box stores”, Ms Chang-McGrath says.
“We’ve found that a lot of parents hate going to the toy store because it’s a place where arguments will happen, they lose control of their budget and their children,” she says. “Online, you don’t have to face those battles.”