5.31.2012

Brick & Mortar vs. www

Since 1943, Weisshouse has been a "brick & mortar" store. Stores have a "feeling". Stores provide shoppers with a way to sit in a sofa, touch fabric and really "see" everything up close and personal. In addition, brick & mortar stores provide shoppers with customer service that simply cannot be had on the Internet. While there are advantages to online shopping like late hours and free shipping, a rather interesting article from Yahoo.com highlights the highs and lows of Internet vs. department store shopping and how Internet consumers could actually be paying more. 


"With so many brick and mortar stores online, many times shoppers can choose between the convenience of ordering merchandise online or purchasing it in the store. Some people choose online ordering because they like shopping during the time the physical store is closed, or they avoid crowds. Other people prefer shopping in stores in order to try on merchandise and get a feel for the item. While theses choices are the reason for both mall and Internet shopping, in the long run, a consumer may actually be paying more for this convenience.Sometimes, online coupons for merchants will entice shoppers into believing that, with a coupon code, their order will be less expensive then if they were to shop in the brick and mortar version of that retailer. Some of the most popular codes, "Free shipping" and "25% off" may look like a big savings, but what most people do not realize is that the discounts are meant to draw shoppers to the website. This is because most items when ordered online are shipped, not directly from a physical store, but from the store's warehouse. This is in contrast to department store shopping, where inventory is limited to quantities on hand, hence the reason for limited availability of some items".


To view this article from Yahoo.com in its entirety, visit: http://voices.yahoo.com/online-shopping-vs-department-store-shopping-which-310836.html





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