Pier 1 Imports Fading Away {Flemington, NJ and 11 other Garden State spots}
The news of the decline of once healthy retail stores like Pier 1 Imports always seems to follow the same model. You’ve heard it before.
Restructuring. Or cost cuts. Under-performing locations. Overhead.
Then eventually bankruptcy. Perhaps new ownership. Some other nonsense, then they’re gone most of the time.
This has happened the same way countless times. Every now and then, some better-managed companies make it through. But not many. And most often, a shell of their previous operation.
The 12 New Jersey Pier 1 Imports locations closing as part of this current phase are in East Hanover, Edgewater, Paramus, Woodbridge, Ocean Township, Flemington, South Flanders, North Howell, Cape May, Princeton, Ocean, East Brunswick, Millville, and Cherry Hill.
A total of around 450 (out of 900) are expected to close, including every single location in Canada.
Pier 1 Imports filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection on February 17, 2020. Along with all sorts of “words” about what is expected to come next.
And as you know – those statements RARELY pan out exactly as they say. Sort of akin to a list of campaign promises a politician makes.
So what is causing Pier 1 Imports to dwindle?
As usual – the blame is often attributed to the general economy as well as online shopping. Which is partially true. However, rarely does anyone say “well, this stuff is basically over-priced – and customers became smarter.”
Plus, when other stores such as Walmart and Target offer similar products (all probably made by the same Chinese companies), it becomes harder to compete. Who “shops around” for candles and vases?
Additionally – it appears that the executive board at Pier 1 Imports was also filled with irrational, non-business-savvy individuals. A very weird trend that is happening at a lot of large corporations. Someone always seems to mess it up. Even with “credentials.” Like it is literally by design.
Whatever.
We’re not sad that Pier 1 Imports is having trouble. We’re not the same blind consumers we used to be. Far more practical in 2020 than we ever have been in our lives.
But there may be a time at some point in the future, where no physical stores exist for many items that benefit from physical inspection. Of course, online retailers will likely offer “risk-free” deliveries for cumbersome items such as furniture. This is why it may be time to look at the next generation of “last mile” delivery companies for possible investment. Could be a boom market.
So what next for the retail industry?
