While you can easily shop for clothes online from the comfort of your couch with a glass of your favorite beverage to hand — would you be willing to leave the house if you could get both wine and professional styling advice? Nordstrom hopes so: The retailer is launching a tiny store that doesn’t stock any actual products, but will offer shoppers boozy beverages to sip while they try stuff on. [More]
stores
Starbucks Closing All Teavana Stores
By 7.28.17
It was almost five years ago that Starbucks paid $620 million to acquire mall tea chain Teavana, politely declining the $800 million tea tin upsell. While Teavana products are now for sale in every Starbucks cafe, including fruit-infused iced teas, the company announced this week that it will be closing the remaining Teavana retail stores over the coming year. [More]
Michael Kors Goes Shoe Shopping, Buys Jimmy Choo For $1.3B
By 7.25.17
Nothing goes together quite like shoes and purses — just look in my closet. For that reason, it makes sense that two high-end accessory brands would be interested in becoming one: Despite closing stores and falling sales Michael Kors went shopping this week, placing Jimmy Choo in its shopping bag. [More]
Dollar Stores Go Corporate As Big Chains Put Indie Discounters Out Of Business
By 7.13.17
Across the country, the Dollar Store Wars mean that the national chains Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Family Dollar, and Dollar Express are fighting it out across the country for customers’ affection and brand loyalty. National chains have taken over just about every other retail category, so will independent dollar stores be able to survive? [More]
Plus-Size Online Retailer Eloquii To Open Bricks-And-Mortar Stores
By 7.6.17
The current retail trend is for companies to shutter bricks-and-mortar stores and shift their focus to online sales. But plus-size apparel retailer Eloquii is going in the other direction and opening a handful of physical locations. [More]
Online Consignment Retailer ThredUP To Open Physical Stores
By 6.28.17
While some traditional retailers are moving their businesses online-only, one previously online-only clothier is doing the opposite: Online consignment and thrift store ThredUP is taking its business offline, opening several bricks-and-mortar stores. [More]
Consumerist Friday Flickr Finds
By 6.2.17
Here are six of the best photos that readers added to the Consumerist Flickr Pool in the last week, picked for usability in a Consumerist post or for just plain neatness. [More]
Starbucks Apologizes For Outage, Says All Stores Should Be Operational Again Soon
By 5.16.17 — Updated: 5.25.17
After Starbucks stores around the country had to shut down or give out free food when their payment system stopped working, the coffee giant says that most affected locations are back to normal and that all stores should be back online soon. [More]
Abercrombie Puts ‘For Sale’ Sign On Its Bared, Chiseled Chest
By 5.10.17
After years of struggling to bring in customers and turnaround falling sales, Abercrombie & Fitch shuttered 60 U.S. stores and laid off 150 employees at its headquarters in the first few months of 2017. Now the teen-focused retailer has reportedly put a “for sale” sign on itself. [More]
Rue21 Closing 400 Stores, Focusing On Online Sales
By 4.17.17
Teen retailer Rue21, which has been the subject of recent bankruptcy rumors, has decided to shutter 400 stores and put more of its attention to online sales. [More]
Bad News For Neiman Marcus: Rich People Are Bargain-Hunting Online, Using Purses For Multiple Years
By 4.17.17
Why is the high-end department store Neiman Marcus reportedly restructuring its debt and maybe even seeking a buyer? It turns out that catering to very rich people isn’t a guaranteed way to keep money coming in, since even rich people are turning to online bargain-hunting. [More]
JCPenney Postpones Store Closings Because People Are Shopping There Again
By 4.13.17
Two months after JCPenney announced it would shutter 138 stores across the country amid falling sales, the company says it is delaying those closings as customers have apparently started shopping with the retailer again. [More]
Walmart Greeter Says He Was Fired After Turkey Wandered Into Store
By 4.13.17
Have you heard the one about the turkey that wandered into a Wisconsin Walmart? Oh, it’s not a joke, it really happened last month, and now the greeter for the store says he’s been fired over the incident. [More]
Samsung Store Catches Fire, Cause Unknown
By 3.28.17
As if Samsung hasn’t had enough problems involving explosions or fires when it comes to its devices: A fire began in the backroom of one of the company’s retail stores in Singapore early today. [More]
Here’s The List Of JCPenney Stores Closing This Spring
By 3.17.17 — Updated: 5.9.17
JCPenney has done the best job of all American department store chains at adapting to the new retail reality and recovering from a brief complete brand makeover under former CEO Ron Johnson, but that reality still means closing some of its stores. Today, the chain released the list of 138 store locations that it plans to close in the coming months. [More]
Family Christian Closing All 240 Stores
By 2.27.17 — Updated: 3.14.17
After 85 years in business, Family Christian is closing for good, shutting down all 240 of its retail stores. [More]
Wet Seal Will Liquidate And Close 137 Remaining Stores
By 2.8.17
Attention, fashionable yet casual Consumerists: Get ready to head to your local mall if you’ve ever liked any products from clothing and accessories seller Wet Seal. The company is closing nationwide, which means selling everything from the clothes left on the racks to its office equipment. [More]
H&M Slows Down Store Openings, Shifting Focus To Online
By 1.31.17
For years, so-called fast fashion purveyor H&M (which stands for Hennes & Mauritz) has quickly opened store after store around the world to compete with rivals like Zara and others. Now, however, the company says it will slow down its pace of new store openings in order to concentrate on current stores and online sales. [More]
