Jobs IRLDecoding DemocracyA Warmer WorldI've Always Wondered ...

Loading...

0:00
0% played
Stories Tagged as

Retail

Vanishing America

Remembering the hobby shops of yesteryear

by Rose Conlon
May 3, 2021
“A really wholesome cheap thrill”: A listener on the joys of model rockets and the the hobby shops of his youth.
"It's a really wholesome cheap thrill," Marketplace listener Ted Dupont said about launching model rockets.
Courtesy Max Myers
ListenLISTEN
HTML EMBED:
COPY
EMBED EMBED
Share Now on:
SHARE
Subscribe Using:
SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE

Pent-up demand is helping The RealReal grow

by Kai Ryssdal and Daisy Palacios
Apr 26, 2021
Julie Wainwright, CEO of the luxury consignment store, says in-person shopping "makes sense for our business."
"We believe we're going to be a pandemic recovery story," says Julie Wainwright, founder and CEO of The RealReal. Above, she speaks at Vanity Fair's 2017 Founders Fair.
Photo by Andrew Toth/Getty Images for Vanity Fair
ListenLISTEN
HTML EMBED:
COPY
EMBED EMBED
Share Now on:
SHARE
Subscribe Using:
SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE

Commercial landlords look to grocery stores to fill retail vacancies

by Kristin Schwab
Apr 16, 2021
Groceries are recession-proof, they sign long leases and bring foot traffic to strip malls. But there can be too many in one area.
Grocery store chains like Aldi, Food Lion and Lidl have major expansion plans.
Sean Gallup/Getty Images
ListenLISTEN
HTML EMBED:
COPY
EMBED EMBED
Share Now on:
SHARE
Subscribe Using:
SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE
My Economy

At this toy shop, the kids are finally coming back

by Sean McHenry
Apr 7, 2021
Irene Kesselman, owner of Ali Cat Toys in North Carolina, describes what she's seeing this spring.
Ali Cat Toys made over 50 Easter baskets, Irene Kesselman said, with "a lot of stuffed bunnies and rabbits and lambs."
Courtesy of Irene Kesselman
ListenLISTEN
HTML EMBED:
COPY
EMBED EMBED
Share Now on:
SHARE
Subscribe Using:
SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE
My Economy

For this stationery retailer, it's been a sympathy card kind of year

by Sean McHenry
Mar 23, 2021
A Michigan stationery retailer saw a big sales trend last year: sympathy cards with a "We're in this together" message.
"Our 'Thinking of you' or sympathy cards just took off," Annie Lang Hartman said. "Ours are kind of more cheeky and funny, kind of like 'We're in this together.'"
Courtesy of Annie Lang Hartman
ListenLISTEN
HTML EMBED:
COPY
EMBED EMBED
Share Now on:
SHARE
Subscribe Using:
SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE
My Economy

Seattle retailer reflects on a year without in-person shopping

by Andie Corban
Mar 9, 2021
Things still feel strange for Cat Wilcox, co-owner of women's boutique Velouria. She misses day-to-day interactions with customers.
A store owner opens her clothing shop in Germany on March 9 as lockdown measures ease.
Maja Hitij/Getty Images
ListenLISTEN
HTML EMBED:
COPY
EMBED EMBED
Share Now on:
SHARE
Subscribe Using:
SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE
COVID-19

Running a mall is "still a struggle" nearly a year into the pandemic

by Kai Ryssdal and Andie Corban
Feb 26, 2021
When a customer refuses to wear a mask inside the Butte Plaza Mall, manager Alana Ferko gets called in to help.
Gil Cohen-Magen/Getty Images
ListenLISTEN
HTML EMBED:
COPY
EMBED EMBED
Share Now on:
SHARE
Subscribe Using:
SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE

For public good, not for profit.

Donate
Vanishing America

Why Fry's Electronics was more than a store to many

by David Brancaccio and Rose Conlon
Feb 26, 2021
The ailing tech store closed this week, devastating longtime fans.
"It was this magical wonderland where pretty much everything with a power cord was on sale," said Parker Hall, a product reviewer for Wired.
David McNew/Newsmakers
ListenLISTEN
HTML EMBED:
COPY
EMBED EMBED
Share Now on:
SHARE
Subscribe Using:
SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE

Post-Christmas sales expected to disappoint retailers

by Erika Beras
Dec 25, 2020
Shops and malls could use a boost, but experts say that's not likely this year.
David Dee Delgado/Getty Images
ListenLISTEN
HTML EMBED:
COPY
EMBED EMBED
Share Now on:
SHARE
Subscribe Using:
SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE

Has 2020's spike in support for Black-owned business carried through to the holidays?

by Samantha Fields
Dec 24, 2020
The pandemic has been hard on Black-owned businesses.
Courtesy Tiffany Griffin
ListenLISTEN
HTML EMBED:
COPY
EMBED EMBED
Share Now on:
SHARE
Subscribe Using:
SUBSCRIBE SUBSCRIBE