I agree, I hate going in to stores, fighting the crowds, trying to find a place to park, only to not find what you're looking for.

I sure hope that you are both wrong because it will be awful for all those folks to be out of work. Not to mention how desperately that will effect the nonprofit organizations that depend on donations to survive. Donations are more than money, they are often merchandise that the nonprofit uses in their fundraising.

I don't think so.
You are making the assumption that everyone soon will have internet access, bank accounts, credit accounts and permanent addresses.

We use bricks and mortar stores for purchases that are needed now - not in 3-5 days, delivered by the ever slow USPS.

I hope you are wrong. While I love shopping online esp this time of year, I also like going to the store to try things on and have a look. I sometimes buy and sometimes don't. I can't imagine not having real stores but I wouldn't doubt that you could be right on this at least someday.

Just got back from Kohl's where I knew they had what I want for my son at the best price I have seen and then I had a coupon. They had the display one, but no others. I heard the announcement that you can buy at their online kiosk, so I went over there after I verified that I could still use my 20% off coupon too. It too 10 minutes for that lousy machine to get my order, even with the manager trying to help. Ah well, I got it for $50 less than other stores.

Not for me. I don't like crowds, so I do little at this time of year, but I need to see and touch something before or if, I buy.
I can't buy over the internet for that reason.

I don't think it will happen for any of the people alive today. I prefer to walk into a store, bank, whatever and do business in person. That way I can walk right back into the store to return it or fix a problem at the bank in person. I don't shop in crowds. I shop week days and lunch out without a crowd, but I don't work so that's easy for me. And I enjoy shopping/browsing .

We use the internet to preshop for many things. We look online at the hardware stores or whatever, read the reviews for items, comparison shop to find the best price, and then I go buy it at the store. I like to see the item before I buy it, but my dh also likes to have input on things that we will both use.

We got our new flooring from an internet dealer, but only after we'd looked at it in a store and researched it all carefully. Our internet dealer was able to substantially beat the "real" store prices...but of course as with any major purchase, we were cautious buying flooring this way.

I think there will always be a place for brick and mortar stores. But the need for them may be less.

I don't shop online, it's important that I know and support my local community. But just as important is that like Jasdip, Vala55 and some of the others, I want the sensory satisfaction of shopping in person, anything can look good on a computer screen.

I am also not a comparison shopper, if I think it is a fair price or if I want it badly enough I will buy it and not over think it. My time has worth and luckily I am in a position to be able to do that. I've experienced poor service but usually on the busiest shopping days or in the retailers that advertise that they sell on based price. If you want excellent service you need to be willing to pay for it.

Quote; "Bricks and mortar stores have a very limited future"

That is the mentality that is rapidly undoing our entire economy....

Everyday we see people who stand at the counter and tie up the salespersons time demonstrating a product and answering a myriad of stupid questions, only to have the customer walk off and go purchase the item online because they can save a few pennies....

Who do you think has to absorb the cost of that item that is being handled in the store then later sold at a reduced price because it was a demonstrator?

Who pays the salespersons wages?

Who pays the cops, firemen, Judges, highway maintainance crews, shool teachers and other civil employees if you buy online and circumvent the sales tax?
(Right now both California & Michigan require online sellers to collect sales take from all orders that are shipped into their states and there are about 20 other states that have legislation pending to do the same.)

What do you suppose will happen to your property value when your community becomes a ghost town?

Who wants to shop in a downtown business district, a Mall or a strip mall if half of the stores are boarded up?

Where do you suppose the Cashiers, sales people, stock workers & local warehouse workers are gonna work when the brick & mortar stores close?

Who is going to do the warranty service work on the items you purchase from cyberspace? Don't think for a moment that you can take it to the brick & mortar stores warranty service dept because they can trace the serial numbers which will reveal where the item was purchased, and they are not obligated to service any item that was purchased outside their warranty service area. If you got it from cyberspace they will tell you to send it off to cyberspace for repairs...

When you are purchasing from cyberspace, who are you really purchasing from? Are you certain it is a website that is endorsed by the product manufacturer, of is it just some sleezeball with a desktop computer and a website that imitates the real thing? (Recently a friend of mine purchased a TV from cyberspace and later when he had a problem with it he called the warranty hotline that was listed on his delivery invoice, only to find that number was out of service. He then took it to the brick & mortar stores warranty department and when they ran the serial number they found out it was stolen merchandise from another state, which was of course confiscated by the local police as evidence, and when they tried to trace the online dealer they found that ISP no longer was in service. When my friend argued with the cops that they could not take the TV, they told him not only were they keeping it, but if he continued to give them a hard time they could arrest him for receiving stolen goods).

Personally, I like to shop in the little Mom & Pop franchise businesses where the store employees have been there for years, know their products and can actually greet you by name when you enter the store. And when I hand my hard earned cash to the saleperson I don't have to worry about identity theft.

I think there will always be a need for some stores. The stores are going to have to learn to compete in terms of convenience, quality and treating the customer right. Some people went to online shopping for lower prices, but a lot of stores ran the customers off because they didn't treat them right. I have local places I shop that aren't the least expensive. I go there because they offer something like customer service or quality I don't easily get elsewhere.

I like shopping and also like the internet for shopping but would hate to see the brick and mortar store (I like the term) go out of business for all the reasons stated already.
Believe it or not there are people who do not have computers and dont want one.

Can you imagine doing all of your grocery shopping online??

There is a company that delivers the groceries to your door, you fill out your list and they pick it out and deliver it. It's very expensive, and I would never not price check or look at the produce and meat, with my own eyes.

So grocery stores will always be a physical store IMO. We certainly can't have a country littered with just grocery stores, we will always have brick and mortar.

I will always do both kinds of shopping. I have to admit that I like to shop in smaller stores and not the mega box type store.

I'll shop locally as much as possible, but in two recent cases, I really struck out. I wanted a pair of shoes in a certain size and color, and they weren't available anywhere, but online, And I bought several bras online because the store only had one in my size, and I wanted to get several.

Trouble is that at the stores, both mom and pop local and a national chain, personnel were unwilling/unwilling to order the items for me, or even let me know when more stock arrived.

So I shop online. Some stores are defeating themselves.

gibby3000 bring up a valid point. She has found that her favorite stores no longer cater to the outer edges of the bell curve. The store manager looks at a plot of quantity sold over a range of sizes and sees a classic bell curve: the small sizes and large sizes as well as mismatched sizes ( big around but short or skinny and tall) are on the lower and upper parts of the curve where sales are dwindling. He then stocks only the middle 2/3 of the curve. If you want a different size, he'll say we can order it for you and maybe it will come in 2 weeks. you have to wait for the factory to make one. The factory makes only the stuff the store manager has ordered. (My reply to this is why should I pay retail for wholesale service?)

The same thing has happened in shoes. I am seeing ads for shoes with nebulous sizes, like small, medium and large - like one size fits all - baloney. Becasue of this trend, I have been buyuing my shoes mail order from the factory. Sadly, my factory has moved to China, but it takes less than two weeks to make a pair of shoes and deliver to my door. The price is not low, but I can get a shoe that fits. My foot is short and wide with a high arch.

Lucky you who fall under the middle 2/3 of the bell curve; The rest of has to search for our stuff.

Just want to say a word about buying Levis. They are my favorite jeans, but their quality control is terrible. They seem to be outsourced in several countries (Mexico, India, Korea) and the materials used and fit can vary to a tremendous degree even if you think you are buying the same style (that is, number such as 505 jeans or the like). So what you try on in the store may have a much different fit than the exact same thing you order online.

More and more I find myself ordering online.I have never been a person who enjoys going to Malls and walking all over the place and never finding what I went in there for.
The brick and mortar stores will not disappear ,but they will be much smaller in size. I just heard that very thing being said about some of the Best Buy stores that are closing. The need for such a large store is becoming obsolete.Consolidate and make good use of the space you have.

I know all the malls near me (Long Island NY) are suffering. Little stores, book stores, etc closed first. Now Sears isn't looking too good... I buy new on Amazon and have never had a problem. Just check their return policies. Most internet sites don't charge state sales tax. Better in my pocket.