Here's a possible answer as to why sales are slipping in some categories

[corvettestainless]

Per an article on the NY Times, here's 2 reasons that some categories have slipped in sales (I am just listing small bits of the article and paraphrasing)

Note that only 11% of all sales are done on the internet, even though growth has been insane, it's still 11%. That means 89% is done in stores. 

1.) Income Inequality: Bottom line- the 'old' middle class  is, due to increases in housing, food, utilities, medical insurances, drugs etc. (medical was 5% of spending, now averages 18%). is shrinking to almost poverty levels. They have less $$ to spend on clothes, collections etc.

2.) Service instead of things: People are spending on services and less things- like…. Today, clothes spending accounts for 2.4%...was 17% of spending in 1920. 

[upgradedendmills]

Paraphrasing and taking things out of context can be upsetting to some people. (Not me, I consider what motive the poster or messenger might have and discount it from there.)

[pburn]

I'm probably not eBay's target demographic, but I find I enjoy spending more on "experiences" than "things." I take a lot of short three-to-five day trips and several longer trips throughout the year. Seems to mean more to me and my gang of undesirables.

There's the added benefit of not having to find a place to store a vacation. Or having to dust it.

[lacemaker3]

@corvettestainless, I think that most people would appreciate it if you would please post a link to the full article.

[chapeau-noir]

Those out-takes aren't really startling or new, and the context is pretty clear - it's been known for a while that generationally people are collecting less and experiencing more.  In a big way, we're going back to old fashioned habits where people weren't constantly consuming but doing - what I call 'sport shopping' was big for a few decades and the retail industry thought it would last forever, vastly over-expanded and are now left with the fact that it was pretty much a passing fad.  There are dead and dying malls everywhere, even though individual stores (mostly carrying commodities that everyone uses) do very well - marts, groceries and the like.

I completely understand the desire of experiences over things, BTW and I don't think I'm in anyone's demographic market anymore lol.

[soh.maryl]

I would seriously question that "11% of all sales are done on the internet" figure.

Have just recently seen a much higher figure, but cannot cite the source because I don't recall where I read it or what the source was.  

[chapeau-noir]

Statista has it at projected at 14% - I've read 15% elsewhere but that's in passing (sites like marketpulse, etc.).

https://www.statista.com/statistics/379112/e-commerce-share-of-retail-sales-in-us/

ETA: Usually we hear something like "Amazon has 45% of the online sales" but it's not given in overall context, and so "45%" sticks in our minds - I remember a while back being surprised at actually how low a percentage online sales really has.

[corvettestainless]

Was on MSN, I cannot locate now. The story was about 'B&M Stores and how they are NOT being destroyed by internet sales' and then they gave some reasons. 

I didn't post it as a whole because most of the story had nothing to do with what I got out of it, but the figures I got were accurate and what I was pointing out. Just food for thought..if I can find the article, I will post the link. 

PS. I don't sell clothes, collectables, etc. I just found the article interesting and saw there were some figures in there that makes sense to why there are some members here struggling with sales. 

[corvettestainless]

And what you are doing is becoming more popular. Remember Members Only Jackets and Polo Cologne and needing to have these things when you were 20 in the 80's? 

Now there is no Jacket or Cologne or any 1 thing that 'everybody' is into and much of lifes 'wants' are experiences, be it on the phone watching a movie or U-tube, or hiking or cheap hoteling it for an experience in 'another place' etc. 

I'm into Cars and Car Shows, build and sell car show items, and 'old cars' have gotten to the point where they are out of reach for most. Wasn't like that 10-20 years ago. 

Times do change....

[doubledz-a2z]

Disposable income folks once had is now spent on internet, cell phone service, STREAMING, Netflix etc.  Nothing left to buy items.     I sold at the swap meet in the early 1990's before Walmart, Internet, etc.  We were swamped every Saturday morning.  For everything from beds to dinettes, clothes, trinkets, etc.   Fast forward and now crickets.

[luckythewinner]

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Today, clothes spending accounts for 2.4%...was 17% of spending in 1920. 

If one is looking for reasons why current online sales have slipped from previous years, it would make more sense to compare current online sales to online sales from previous years ... not to sales from a century ago. 

medical was 5% of spending, now averages 18%

According the Kaiser Family Foundation, per-capital out-of-pocket costs for healthcare (expressed in constant 2018 dollars) have increased from $982 in 2001 to $1150 in 2018. 

[membersinceaug2001]

I remember seeing a 16-19% figure last year. But I'm sure store shopping is still much higher than mail order.

[membersinceaug2001]

I just read an article in the local paper a couple weeks ago that malls are actually booming, where they still exist. Low tech is the in thing now at those malls. A bunch of the info was about a Florida mall.

[cashvaluerecovery2011]

You lost me at "income inequality".

This term was made up to try to make people feel like victims of other people. It has nothing to do with lower sales because income has never been equal throughout the history of man.

Do people generally have less to spend? Yes some people do. Possibly because they dont make much. Possibly because they make poor spending choices. Possibly because taxes are stupid high.

There will never ever be equal income because some people will always work harder or longer or be more skilled. Some people will always be lazy or make poor costly decisions. Its no different today than its ever been. Adapt and overcome or waste time blaming inequality.....which really means excuses to not take blame.

[chapeau-noir]

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@membersinceaug2001 wrote:
I just read an article in the local paper a couple weeks ago that malls are actually booming, where they still exist. Low tech is the in thing now at those malls. A bunch of the info was about a Florida mall.

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There's some consolidation going on as it was overbuilding that sank a lot of those malls - just google 'ghost malls' or 'dead malls' for quite an interesting survey.  I was down in a strip mall suburb way south of Seattle a while back and it was pretty eerie - ghost malls and huge empty mart buildings with vacant parking lots, - a few stores still hanging on in that locale, but there was hardly anyone in sight - reminded me of a science fiction story about an abandoned city.  Yet the one single destination mall near the airport some miles north of that suburb is doing well - they have outlets along with everything else.  Up north of Seattle (I live about 12-15 miles north of the city), Northgate, which is the oldest indoor mall in the country, is a ghost town and has lost most of its anchor stores (despite the owners doing a good job of keeping up with the times), and a lot of it is being converted into office space, living space and community space, with some shops and a grocery - that whole area is being turned to more high density housing with transit nearby - it's a hugely popular option.  In the 80s and 90s it would be packed, but no longer.  Yet, some miles south of that, a 'village' mall which has sidewalks to stroll (many covered - it's pretty wet here), shops, restaurants and stores, is doing extremely well.