25 years ago, opening a retail store was much easier. Consumers were regularly buying staple items they needed. Businesses were not difficult to run and business was good. Proprietors often felt like they were shining examples of individuals living the American dream. The neighborhood kids understood that if they ever needed a job, it could be found at one of the many neighborhood stores; candy store, drug store or their local women’s shoes business. Some of the shops have been owned by the same family for generations. However, in today’s economy most of these mom and pop stores are being forced to close their doors. They’re struggling in keeping their businesses afloat.

See also: women’s shoes

Over the years, most of these local businesses had survived competition by large department store chains. They were able to compete because they provided individual customer service. They were able to maintain a steady flow of loyal customers. The neighborhood shoe store, for example, would let customers return a pair of shoes without a receipt, a gesture based on personal acquaintance with the customer and the assurance of a continuing relationship with him. Sometimes developing strong good customer service bonds were better for business than mere bargain sales and discounts. Customer service was one of the main tactics small retail outlets used to gain leverage over and compete with large department stores.

Since the development of the internet, small retail stores have had to compete not only with their local competitors, but they now have to compete with online stores. The impact from onlinestores may not have been clear at first, but gradually increasing numbers of shoppers have begun to make online purchases. There’s no more going to your local shoe store; instead buyers are trying on shoes online. As internet retail stores flourished, local vendors [experienced|started to see[/spin] a sharp decline. While this is convenient for customers, this is taking a toll on once-prosperous local shops.

In today’s economy, small merchants are now facing an even bigger challenge to their survival. With the banks in their current state, they’ve tightened the reins by decreasing the lines of credit that merchants depend upon. This credit crunch has cause local merchants to turn to drastic measures. For instance; your local footwear store owner has had to dip into his retirement fund to purchase inventory or funding their marketing budget. They don’t have a large funding base to draw on. And, with banks lowering credit limits, the business owner have fewer financial options. The overall decline in business compels him to consider the strong possibility of a completely restructured life.