Shoppers go back to stores, but retailers face challenges<br /><br />Americans are going back to one of their favorite pastimes: store shopping.<br /><br />With more people getting vaccinated and dropping their face masks, retailers from Walmart to Macy’s are seeing an eager return to their stores after more than a year of their customers migrating online during the pandemic.<br /><br />The return to store shopping, highlighted in many retailers’ earnings reports in recent days, offers a big relief in part because fewer shoppers ask for their money back after making a purchase at the store — 8% compared with 25% for online, according to Forrester Research. And store customers tend to do more impulse buying. For clothing, for instance, 25% of purchases are done on a whim versus 16% online, says market research firm NPD Group Inc.<br /><br />Still, retailers — particularly mall-based stores and other specialty stores that were struggling even before the pandemic — face plenty of challenges to keep customers coming back. They face stepped up competition online and from discounters that thrived in the last year. Experts also say that post-pandemic shoppers will be even more demanding: After being forced to stay close to home, they’re looking for better and convenient services and experiences.<br /><br />PHOTOS BY AP<br /><br />Subscribe to The Manila Times Channel - https://tmt.ph/YTSubscribe<br /><br />Visit our website at https://www.manilatimes.net<br /><br />Follow us:<br />Facebook - https://tmt.ph/facebook<br />Instagram - https://tmt.ph/instagram<br />Twitter - https://tmt.ph/twitter<br />DailyMotion - https://tmt.ph/dailymotion<br /><br />Subscribe to our Digital Edition - https://tmt.ph/digital<br /><br />Check out our Podcasts:<br />Spotify - https://tmt.ph/spotify<br />Apple Podcasts - https://tmt.ph/applepodcasts<br />Amazon Music - https://tmt.ph/amazonmusic<br />Deezer: https://tmt.ph/deezer<br />Stitcher: https://tmt.ph/stitcher<br />Tune In: https://tmt.ph/tunein<br />Soundcloud: https://tmt.ph/soundcloud<br /><br />#TheManilaTimes
