Headlines

Jewelers, Don’t Be Like the Last Blockbuster Store Left in America

Published

7 years ago

July 16, 2018

INSTORE Staff

Be persistent, but change with the times.

In the current era of retail, you have to be persistent.

But you also have to change with the times, accepting — even embracing — changes to your business model and landscape.

Otherwise you could end up like the last Blockbuster video store in America.

The last two Blockbusters in Alaska are closing, the New York Post reports. That will leave just one store, located in Bend, OR.

“How exciting,” the store’s manager, Sandi Harding, told the Post, apparently without irony.

Harding said that there are “no plans on closing any time soon” and that the future is promising.

We wish Harding and the store’s owners luck. If history is a guide, they’ll need it.

The chain once had more than 4,500 stores in the U.S., but the growth of streaming services, automated kiosks and other innovations led to a decline in its rental model. The company declared bankruptcy in 2010 and many of its stores were acquired by Dish Network, with a few continuing to operate.

This week has brought headlines such as this one from the Chicago Tribune: “‘Why are you still here?’: Inside the last Blockbuster left in America.”

A choice line from the Tribune article: “Even the IBM computers are running the same floppy disks from the 1990s, [Harding] said, shocking the younger employees.”

So jewelers, don’t be like the last Blockbuster left standing. Brick-and-mortar retail is still very viable millennials actually visit stores more than other generations do — but you do have to change with the times.

What are you doing to ensure your business stays relevant and thrives in an evolving retail environment? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below.

Read more at the New York Post

Retiring? Let Wilkerson Do the Heavy Lifting

Retirement can be a great part of life. As Nanji Singadia puts it, “I want to retire and enjoy my life. I’m 78 now and I just want to take a break.” That said, Nanji decided that the best way to move ahead was to contact the experts at Wilkerson. He chose them because he knew that closing a store is a heavy lift. To maximize sales and move on to the next, best chapter of his life, he called Wilkerson—but not before asking his industry friends for their opinion. He found that Wilkerson was the company most recommended and says their professionalism, experience and the homework they did before the launch all helped to make his going out of business sale a success. “Wilkerson were working on the sale a month it took place,” he says. “They did a great job.”