Personal shopping is coming to the masses.
New York’s retailers are responding to low foot traffic by normalizing systems previously available to only the upper echelons of its customer base, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Some Manhattan stores are allowing shoppers to take clothing, hand-picked by their staff, home to try on. Others are conducting in-store shopping by appointment only and displaying clothing racks outside.
Retail stores were allowed to reopen on June 8, as part of phase one of New York City’s reopening. But foot traffic remains down. During the week of June 15, traffic was down 22 percent compared to the same period in 2019, the Journal reported.
The lower volume of shoppers on the streets is hitting smaller, mom-and-pop boutiques harder than national retailers. But even the big chains are feeling the pain — and some have been for quite some time.
More than 300 national chain stores were shuttered in New York City last year, the largest drop since the Center for an Urban Future began tracking the city’s stores.
[WSJ] — Erin Hudson
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