The death of physical retail stores has been greatly exaggerated. Although there have been numerous store closings and bankruptcies, some retailers (e.g., Macys, Target) have recently reported strong earnings and are seeing more in-store customers. In addition, there has been growth in store openings for some chains.
But it’s certainly true that physical retail needs to change if it’s going to thrive against the backdrop of e-commerce and increasingly demanding shoppers. Location intelligence company GroundTruth recently released a survey based report that sheds some light on areas where retailers need to invest to keep their stores competitive.