Guest guest Posted June 18, 2007 Report Share Posted June 18, 2007 I thought this was interesting as it mentioned beauty products... ************************************************************************** Online Sales Lose Steam By MATT RICHTEL<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/r/matt_richte\ l/index.html?inline=nyt-per>and BOB TEDESCHI <http://query.nytimes.com/search/query?ppds=bylL & v1=BOB TEDESCHI & fdq=19960101 & td=sysdate & sort=newest & ac=BOB TEDESCHI & inline=nyt-per> Published: June 17, 2007 SAN FRANCISCO, June 16 — Has online retailing entered the Dot Calm era? Online Revenue Growth Expected to Slow<javascript:pop_me_up2('http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2007/06/17/busines\ s/20070617_ECOM_GRAPHIC.html', '526_771', 'width=526,height=771,location=no,scrollbars=yes,toolbars=no,resizable=yes')> Since the inception of the Web, online commerce has enjoyed hypergrowth, with annual sales increasing more than 25 percent over all, and far more rapidly in many categories. But in the last year, growth has slowed sharply in major sectors like books, tickets and office supplies. Growth in online sales has also dropped dramatically in diverse categories like health and beauty products, computer peripherals and pet supplies. Analysts say it is a turning point and growth will continue to slow through the decade. The reaction to the trend is apparent at Dell, which many had regarded as having mastered the science of selling computers online, but is now putting its PCs in Wal-Mart<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/wal_mart_stores_i\ nc/index.html?inline=nyt-org>stores. Expedia<http://www.nytimes.com/mem/MWredirect.html?MW=http://custom.marketwatch.\ com/custom/nyt-com/html-companyprofile.asp & symb=EXPE;EXPEW;EXPEZ>has almost tripled the number of travel ticketing kiosks it puts in hotel lobbies and other places that attract tourists. The slowdown is a result of several forces. Sales on the Internet are expected to reach $116 billion this year, or 5 percent of all retail sales, making it harder to maintain the same high growth rates. At the same time, consumers seem to be experiencing Internet fatigue and are changing their buying habits. John Johnson, 53, who sells medical products to drug stores and lives in San Francisco, finds that retailers have livened up their stores to be more alluring. " They're working a lot harder, " he said as he shopped at Book Passage in downtown San Francisco. " They're not as stuffy. The lighting is better. You don't get someone behind the counter who's been there 40 years. They're younger and hipper and much more with it. " He and his wife, Liz Hauer, 51, a Macy's executive, also shop online, but mostly for gifts or items that need to be shipped. They said they found that the experience could be tedious at times. " Online, it's much more of a task, " she said. Still, Internet commerce is growing at a pace that traditional merchants would envy. But online sales are not growing as fast as they were even 18 months ago. Forrester Research<http://www.nytimes.com/mem/MWredirect.html?MW=http://custom.marketwatch\ ..com/custom/nyt-com/html-companyprofile.asp & symb=FORR>, a market research company, projects that online book sales will rise 11 percent this year, compared with nearly 40 percent last year. Apparel sales, which increased 61 percent last year, are expected to slow to 21 percent. And sales of pet supplies are on pace to rise 30 percent this year after climbing 81 percent last year. Growth rates for online sales are slowing down in numerous other segments as well, including appliances, sporting goods, auto parts, computer peripherals, and even music and videos. Forrester says that sales growth is pulling back in 18 of the 24 categories it measures. Jupiter Research, another market research firm, says the growth rate has peaked. It projects that overall online sales growth will slow to 9 percent a year by the end of the decade from as much as 25 percent in 2004. Early financial results from e-commerce companies bear out the trend. EBay reported that revenue from Web site sales increased by just 1 percent in the first three months of this year compared with the same period last year. Bookings from Expedia's North American Web sites rose by only 1 percent in the first quarter of this year. And Dell said that revenue in the Americas — United States, Canada and Latin America — for the three months ended May 4 was $8.9 billion, or nearly unchanged from the same period last year. " There's a recognition that some customers like a more interactive experience, " said Alex Gruzen, senior vice president for consumer products at Dell. " They like shopping and they want to go retail. " The turning point comes as most adult Americans, and many of their children, are already shopping online. Analysts project that by 2011, online sales will account for nearly 7 percent of overall retail sales, though categories like computer hardware and software generate more than 40 percent of their sales on the Internet. There are other factors at work as well, including a push by companies like Apple<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/apple_computer_inc/i\ ndex.html?inline=nyt-org>, Starbucks<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/starbucks_corpor\ ation/index.html?inline=nyt-org>and the big shopping malls to make the in-store experience more compelling. Nancy F. Koehn, a professor at Harvard<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/h/harv\ ard_university/index.html?inline=nyt-org>Business School who studies retailing and consumer habits, said that the leveling off of e-commerce reflected the practical and psychological limitations of shopping online. She said that as physical stores have made the in-person buying experience more pleasurable, online stores have continued to give shoppers a blasé experience. In addition, online shopping, because it involves a computer, feels like work. " It's not like you go onto Amazon<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/amazon_inc/index.ht\ ml?inline=nyt-org>and think: 'I'm a little depressed. I'll go onto this site and get transported,' " she said, noting that online shopping is more a chore than an escape. But Ms. Koehn and others say that online shopping is running into practical problems, too. For one, Ms. Koehn noted, online sellers have been steadily raising their shipping fees to bolster profits or make up for their low prices. In response, a so-called clicks-and-bricks hybrid model is emerging, said Dan Whaley, the founder of GetThere, which became one of the largest Internet travel businesses after it was acquired by Sabre Holdings<http://www.nytimes.com/mem/MWredirect.html?MW=http://custom.marketwatch\ ..com/custom/nyt-com/html-companyprofile.asp & symb=TSG> .. The bookseller Borders, for example, recently revamped its Web site to allow users to reserve books online and pick them up in the store. Similar services were started by companies like Best Buy<http://www.nytimes.com/mem/MWredirect.html?MW=http://custom.marketwatch.com/\ custom/nyt-com/html-companyprofile.asp & symb=BBY>and Sears. Other retailers are working to follow suit. " You don't realize how powerful of a phenomenon this new strategy has become, " Mr. Whaley said. " Nearly every big box retailer is opening it up. " Barnes & Noble<http://www.nytimes.com/mem/MWredirect.html?MW=http://custom.marketwatch.co\ m/custom/nyt-com/html-companyprofile.asp & symb=BKS>recently upgraded its site to include online book clubs, reader forums and interviews with authors. The company hopes the changes will make the online world feel more like the offline one, said Marie J. Toulantis, the chief executive of BarnesandNoble.com <http://barnesandnoble.com/>. " We emulate the in-store experience by having a book club online, " she said. The retailers that have started in-store pickup programs, like Sears and REI, have found that customers who choose the hybrid model are more likely to buy additional products when they pick up their items, said Patti Freeman Evans, an analyst at Jupiter Research. Consumers are generally not committed to one form of buying over the other. Maggie Hake, 21, a recent college graduate heading to Africa in the fall to join the Peace Corps<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/p/peace_\ corps/index.html?inline=nyt-org>, said that when she needs to buy something for her Macintosh computer, she prefers visiting a store. " I trust it more, " she said. " I want to be sure there's a person there if something goes wrong. " Ms. Hake, who lives in Kentfield, Calif., just north of San Francisco, does like shopping online for certain things, particularly shoes, which are hard to find in her size. " I've got big feet — size 12.5 in women's, " she said. " I also buy textbooks online. They're cheaper. " John Morgan, an economics professor from the Haas School of Business at the University of California<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/u/u\ niversity_of_california/index.html?inline=nyt-org>, Berkeley, said he expected online commerce to continue to increase, partly because it remains less than 1 percent of the overall economy. " There's still a lot of head room for people to grow, " he said. Matt Richtel reported from San Francisco. Bob Tedeschi reported from Guilford, Conn. -- Cheers! Kathleen Petrides The Woobey Queen Http://www.woobeyworld.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 << said that the leveling off of e-commerce reflected the practical and psychological limitations of shopping online. She said that as physical stores have made the in-person buying experience more pleasurable, online stores have continued to give shoppers a blasé experience. In addition, online shopping, because it involves a computer, feels like work. >> Oh, PLEASE. Please tell me where to find an onsite store that provides a pleasurable experience! All I ever experience in " real " stores is pushy salespeople or else incredibly clueless ones, incompetent customer service, unstocked shelves, invisible pricing, rude customers, children running amok...not to mention the traffic getting there and trying to find parking! I HATE retail shopping. <<They said they found that the experience could be tedious at times. " Online, it's much more of a task, " she said. >> It only seems overwhelming to price hunting newbiews because there are too many options. The reward is when you find what you want at the price you prefer and the shipping doesn't kill the deal. Even better is when a real camaraderie forms with the seller and you go back again and again for great deals, great service, and a great friendship. I have never found that in a physical store. Online shopping has become, for me, the fantasy of the old-time general store or something out of It's A Wonderful Life where we all know each other's names and the seller knows what I like and really cares if I'm happy with the sale and really cares whether I come back. I find I really care about the seller, too. <<said that when she needs to buy something for her Macintosh computer, she prefers visiting a store. " I trust it more, " she said. " I want to be sure there's a person there if something goes wrong. " >> When did " a person there " ever mean anything? So what, they're there. Today. Doesn't mean you'll ever catch them in place again. Doesn't mean they'll honor the promises they made. Doesn't mean they have any idea what they're talking about. Just because they're there doesn't mean they're all there. If you know what I mean. <<finds that retailers have livened up their stores to be more alluring.....You don't get someone behind the counter who's been there 40 years. They're younger and hipper and much more with it. " >> You mean all that nasal and labial hardware? Fine. But unfortunately, they seldom know anything about the products or even their own store's policies. (This is assuming you can find someone to help you in the first place). I generally feel sorry for these youngsters who don't receive proper training or professional guidance and whose managers don't know how to manage. I'm always very nice to them even though they can't answer a single question for me. I can't imagine their jobs are terrifically satisfying. Sorry, but this article seemed a bit biased. It only provided one side. But even if it's true, I'm not looking to change MY shopping habits. In fact, I wish I could do EVERYTHING online. If only I could get my HAIR CUT over the internet!! jaime,CA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 " If only I could get my HAIR CUT over the Internet! " Now THAT's funny! I like both kinds of shopping... each in their own way. I never buy clothes or shoes over the Internet, especially shoes. I have really wide feet and most of the time these shoes that are la bled " wide " are a c width or a narrow d width and I need a generous d width. Won't waste my money that way. Books I very rarely purchase over the Internet. I'm very strange. I like to hold my book, sniff the newness and feel the pages... I never take the front or back copy to buy... it's always in the middle and has to look pristine... unless it's the last copy of a book I have to have... and then I always feel they should give me a discount for a previously perused book. It's not dogeared or anything, spines not broken but it has this slightly " ashamed " look about it. ROFL! Most anything else I'll buy over the internet.... right now I'm looking for a HUGE pie plate, these 9-10 inchers just aren't cutting it... My pies are baked at night when the kids are in bed, by three thirty the very next afternoon, pies are GONE! Sat up until 12:30 this morning baking a cherry pie, only to see it's half gone when I got up. Husband and 3 kids each had a slice. Do you KNOW how tedious cherries are? These were Rainier and Queen Anne cherries... anywho... on a pie plate hunt. K On 6/19/07, Brian Jacobs <jacobfam wrote: > > . > > > -- Cheers! Kathleen Petrides The Woobey Queen Http://www.woobeyworld.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 I can't see it happening - with the price of gas going thru the roof, lack of parking, limited selection and/or bare shelves, rude sales people, ruder shoppers, (I can go a bit longer but you get my drift) I like shopping on line. I do 75-90% of my holiday gift shopping on line. My eBay account really gets a work out at holiday time too ! One years I was able to buy nearly 4 times the gift for less than half of what I would had to pay in a store and the shipping costs were the same or less than I would have had to pay for gas. And lots of places offer free shipping at holiday time too. I love shopping on line ! No crowds, no hunting for a parking space in the snow/cold, no hassles. I can shop anytime I feel like it. Since my grand kids are used to seeing me get packages when I order soap making supplies, they don't think anything of seeing extra boxes around and since my soap supplies are off limits, it's real easy to hide gifts in plain site Paula Coon www.farmfreshsoapsandcandles.com farmfreshsoapsandcandles > > I thought this was interesting as it mentioned beauty products... > ************************************************************************** Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 21, 2007 Report Share Posted June 21, 2007 , " Kathleen Petrides " <WoobeyQueen wrote: > > I thought this was interesting as it mentioned beauty products... > ************************************************************************ ** The reality is that in spite of all the " good economy " talk, the retail sector and sales in general are not good. I have noticed lack of growth since about 2001. Fortunately I have an established customer base, it is not a good time to be starting business. My " day job " in in the insurance industry, I work for one of the top 3, and growth is flat. Joanne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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