Re: Empty Shops in Town Centres
The high street collapse is simply the end of the "rip off" era.
For years and years all these shops and stores have been making hay, wilfully ripping the people of the UK off with ridiculously high prices.
The people of the UK for the longest time either didn't really know they were being ripped off or didn't really have a viable alternative.
People travelling abroad saw how cheap products were there and would bring things back with them on their vacations.
But by and large the retail street stores of Britain had for years, preyed on an unsuspecting ignorant public who continually coughed up the readies for products.
Then the internet happened.
And suddenly people could see the horrific mark-up that shop stores had been charging. How ripped off we have been.
And things began to change.
Why would I pay £5 for a music CD in a store when I can buy it for £2 on the internet?
Why would I buy an expensive fridge from Currys when I can order online for half the price for exactly the same product?
Bit by bit the "Rip Off Britain" situation was revealed to the masses who responded as you would expect.
Now the retail outlets are collapsing. And rightly so.
One by one the former rip-off giants are falling. The emperors have been revealed as having no clothes. They have ruthlessly charged the people of Britain excessive amounts for too long. The people have seen the truth and have had enough.
That's how it started. Then it began to change.
Suddenly the streets began filling with Pound shops and Bargain shops. Suddenly we found we can buy tons of things for just £1 that we were previously being charged extortionate amounts for in large stores. We realised at that point just how badly we had been ripped off in the past.
What we are seeing now is the aftermath of all this.
The high street stores have only themselves to blame. They created a lucrative business model for themselves based on ripping people off with high prices. Now the demand has disappeared their business models don't work, and they are collapsing.
Even today there remain high street stores clinging on, still ripping people off. Take the high street jewellers. They are still charging almost 50% to 100% more for basic gems than online providers. Exactly the same products, just with a huge mark-up. It is patently ridiculous but they are clinging on. They have survived over people like Debenhams because jewellery is expensive and people are afraid to spend £1000s online without first seeing a product. But in time it will become second nature to do so.
I have absolutely no problem with what is happening. It is a necessary period of change to oust the greedy rip-off merchants and to instead create a new industry with new business models that will treat the customer with respect.
Those landlords who own the properties on the high street will likewise have to adjust their business models or go out of business too.
All in all it just means we will get a different type of store, one with better prices for the customer but likely one that sells high volume of product. Coffee shops are doing well in this environment.