Macy's closing 4 Downtown stores across US

[Tuckerman]

[QUOTE=Crawford;7300362]There are five new department stores being built in Manhattan alone- a Neiman Marcus, a Barneys, a Saks Fifth Avenue and two Nordstroms. The existing dozen or so department stores are doing very well and many are expanding. Macys is doing a half-billion renovation of its flagship, and Bloomingdales, Saks, and Bergdorf Goodman are also doing huge renovations.

Agreed and as I also believe a few American cities will maintain the department stores, NYC being the premier example.

You are on target with regard to the USA being over-retailed. There are other components involved with regard to the European situation (I know the German situation quite we'll as my spouse is a Berliner and we spend a lot of time in Germany). First, their zoning restrictions are very strong; second, their cities are very compact; third, there is strong support of pedestrian only zones for shopping; fourth, the public transit systems are very comprehensive and efficient; and, fifth, opening hours are very restricted. As a result of this combination the major stores are very busy during opening hours and the pedestrian 'Fussgaenger Zonen" are packet with people shopping, eating and just strolling.

20th century American cities, in most cases, simply do not have the structural and political necessities to support the "European model."