Many are too big, for one thing, now that many shoppers are doing their browsing online. And chain retailers have to make their products
more enticing, as Best Buy is doing, by allowing consumers to plays with gadgets at the middle of their stores. That said, things are looking up.
"The rise in wages and incomes bodes well for retailers," says Carl Steidtmann, chief economist at Deloitte LLP's research unit. "The consumer traditionally has been the mechanism in driving recoveries. We have seen a bit of a rise in spending in the last six months, but not nearly as robust as in past recoveries."
advertisement
advertisement