Millennials and Stores Without Merchandise
The sad thing about this title is it’s true.
In my news scrape this morning, I saw an article (see below) that said Nordstrom’s is testing stores without merchandise. They will have samples of some clothes to try on, but the rest of the store will focus on personal shoppers, café and services such as mani/pedis.
Look I shop online, but sometimes you need shoes or a dress fast and you cannot wait the 24 to 48 hours for Amazon Prime to deliver it.
Is this really where we are going? I expected that online purchasing is changing how we shop and that there are financial implications because of it, but clothing stores without clothes. I need some time to understand that.
So then I Googled and found that Millennials shopping behaviors ‘are killing’ 19 industries. Holy .. 19! Why not 20? Just a side note. Sorry.
Some of these will make you cringe. Here’s a quick list of the 19 industries changing:
- Beer – Millennials like wine. I do too. So maybe that one isn’t so bad.
- Casual dining – Millennials like quick take out and not cooking at home. I hope that doesn’t mean the only restaurants in my town will be pizza and subs. I’ll be the size of a house.
- Napkins—Millennials prefer paper towels. I can honestly say I have never given this any thought and surprised anyone has. Napkins were big in my house.
- Breasteraunts – I didn’t make that up. It’s in the article. So Hooters is going to suffer. The article actually said Millennials are not interested in breasts. I can name 10 men off the top of my head that will work to keep Hooters alive.
- Cereal – Millennials think it’s an inconvenient breakfast. When Chip is away, I don’t cook. I just eat Raisin Bran. Just sayin’.
- Golf – Millennials aren’t interested in it. They are creating their own exercises … SoulCycle for example.
- Motorcycles – If my friends from Milwaukee accepted the beer change, they will draw the line at giving up their Harleys.
- Homeownership – The good news is it’s not because they don’t want to mow the lawn. It’s because they are marrying later and don’t meet credit standards.
- Yogurt (including low fat yogurt) – Apparently it doesn’t have enough protein, but they still like the sugar. So they are finding alternative sugar sources.
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Bar soap – Millennials think bar soaps are covered with germs and prefer the pump bottles. I do too. So that’s a good one. Wait till you see the next 9
- Diamonds – Come on. Fewer Millennials are marrying. The ones that do marry are choosing non-traditional rings that reflect their personalities.
- Fabric Softeners – According to Proctor and Gambles, Millennials don’t even know what it is. Really?!
- Banks – They want money electronically and see no need for branches. Unless they have a problem.
- Department Stores – Millennials don’t want merchandise. They’re spending more on experiences like traveling. Ask Chip, I’d rather travel then have gift. Maybe I’m a Millennial!
- Designer handbags – This one hurts me to report. Since Millennials want to “find and discover” they don’t want the big, expensive purses. I’m actually grateful, because my Kate Spade bags are reducing in price. Thank you Millennials.
- Gyms – “they’re ditching gyms in favor of boutique, class-centric centers.” What in the world is a class-centric center? I mean I get the drift, but I have yet to see an advertisement for a class-centric center.
- Home Improvement Stores – Hey I guess if you don’t have a house you don’t need a hammer, ladder or cool kitchen faucet or fridge.
- Football – I can already hear the thud from Chip when he reads that. There are several theories, but one is that they are streaming content they prefer and getting info on their phones. So who has the time to spend watching a game.
- Oil – This is more related to the jobs this industry produces. If it was because they wanted the world to be green, I’d respect that. But it’s kinda snotty to look down on the industry because they think it’s dirty work.
Is This All Really Driven by Millennials?
Being the most populated generation (80 million strong), Millenials can drive the marketplace. They favor originality and they are demanding the marketplace redefine to accommodate them.
They expect digital channels to meet their needs for information, comparisons and merchandise/services. A lot of recommendations and “the real deal” about products come from their social media. Millennials like reward programs … especially ones they can interact with. They are more than willing to give up information, such as their location, for a discount.
Millennials want retailers to…wait for it … Make them smile. They also do a lot of impulse purchasing. And, they don’t let a little thing like a recession and loss of job slow their spending. One reason is they look at the world and products more globally.
How does this affect us
Our coffee is safe. Our local fast food restaurants are safe. Being healthy is safe. We can drive cars without any unplanned changes to the car industry. (I do want a hover car as soon as they are affordable). Our vacations are safe.
I feel most of us have adapted to technology that makes it easy for us to follow trends without a big change in our daily habits. If I am completely honest, 11 of the 19 industries in jeopardy are ones that my lifestyle has always eliminated.
So my question is … is this the result of technology on all of us? Are Millennials really the driving force here? I think not!
I mean who hasn’t gone into a store, thought an item was too pricey, went to the parking lot and Googled to see places to get a better price?
I do support the use of napkins though. That’s just good manners.
Links to reference stories
Nordstrom Testing Stores w/o Merchandise