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I wonder why the flagship department stores seem to have perished in the USA but not as much in Europe. Of course Harrods comes to mind. KaDeWe in Berlin is an

by slr555 11y ago

I wonder why the flagship department stores seem to have perished in the USA but not as much in Europe. Of course Harrods comes to mind. KaDeWe in Berlin is an amazing store the recalls and even surpasses the main Marshall Fields in Chicago 50 years ago. KaDeWe is always packed with locals and tourists alike. The author of the article seems solely focused on the USA.

Retric 11y ago
Nordstroms in the US seems to be doing fine using the classic department store setup. I think the difference is they don't sell electronics or home appliances and target upmarket. IMO, while everyone blames online shopping it's arguably the death of the middle class that's really at fault.
- eitally 11y ago
  I don't need to visit frequently, but when I do, I am always surprised and delighted by the customer service at Nordstrom. They seem to be the only national brick & mortar chain [I've encountered] that has a Zappo's level of service.
djrogers 11y ago
They haven't perished at all. Some of them had to contract some, after all you don't need 3 department stores and 2 malls in a small urban area in central Ohio in the Internet age. To compare to Berlin, look to NY or San Francisco - Nordstrom's, Saks, Bloomingdales, etc are all test I'll there and still crowded. Also worth noting the rise of a new category of mall (new since the 80s and growing rapidly in the past decade) - the outlet mall. These are huge, often outdoor malls with many traditional and non-traditional anchors. They draw millions of shoppers from much further away than traditional malls, and offer atomic competition for offline shopping, and a destination for a 'shopping trip as entertainment'.
- norea-armozel 11y ago
  That's been the situation in Wichita, Kansas with regard to the statement about Central Ohio. They overbuilt the two malls we do have and now they're slowly bleeding out (the west side mall is hit the hardest imo) by the newer open air 'malls' in the new suburban developments outside of town. But I think Wichita itself is an anomaly since it's been losing all the higher paying jobs in manufacturing for the last fifteen years and hasn't replaced them with their equivalents in other industries (basically, who wants to setup a business in Kansas or Wichita seems to be the question implied.).

by slr555 11y ago

Retric 11y ago

Nordstroms in the US seems to be doing fine using the classic department store setup. I think the difference is they don't sell electronics or home appliances and target upmarket. IMO, while everyone blames online shopping it's arguably the death of the middle class that's really at fault.

eitally 11y ago
I don't need to visit frequently, but when I do, I am always surprised and delighted by the customer service at Nordstrom. They seem to be the only national brick & mortar chain [I've encountered] that has a Zappo's level of service.

djrogers 11y ago

They haven't perished at all. Some of them had to contract some, after all you don't need 3 department stores and 2 malls in a small urban area in central Ohio in the Internet age. To compare to Berlin, look to NY or San Francisco - Nordstrom's, Saks, Bloomingdales, etc are all test I'll there and still crowded. Also worth noting the rise of a new category of mall (new since the 80s and growing rapidly in the past decade) - the outlet mall. These are huge, often outdoor malls with many traditional and non-traditional anchors. They draw millions of shoppers from much further away than traditional malls, and offer atomic competition for offline shopping, and a destination for a 'shopping trip as entertainment'.

norea-armozel 11y ago
That's been the situation in Wichita, Kansas with regard to the statement about Central Ohio. They overbuilt the two malls we do have and now they're slowly bleeding out (the west side mall is hit the hardest imo) by the newer open air 'malls' in the new suburban developments outside of town. But I think Wichita itself is an anomaly since it's been losing all the higher paying jobs in manufacturing for the last fifteen years and hasn't replaced them with their equivalents in other industries (basically, who wants to setup a business in Kansas or Wichita seems to be the question implied.).