Right or Wrong Location?

The infamous Spring Garden Street is known for so much going on. There is for one the school, student housing, stores, restaurants, and anything else that you can think of for the convenience of students. You would think that Spring Garden Street was a little town of its own. There are the regular city commuters and then there are the college students; who drive like they don't have licenses. Before the Walgreens opened on Spring Garden there was the famous CVS Pharmacy. This store is the landmark for finding the school and my old apartment at The Edge. CVS was so convenient while walking but trying to get in and out of there with my car was ridiculous. I can imagine what the planning stage was for the CVS and how it was such a great idea. Which in all actuality it was a great idea, but they probably didn't imagine the traffic would be the way it is with all the college students.

For anyone who has ever lived off campus you can definitely relate to me when I say walking back to campus is a drag! You don't want to walk to the computer lab, library, caf, or EUC. You don't want to do anything, so for CVS to be withing such great walking distance it was great. I would literally leave my stove on and walk to CVS and still be back in time before the pizza ever finished. The location is great whenever you walking but try driving. The intersection of gas station and student housing and CVS brings too much traffic, not to mention there is a college less than a block away. This can be so bad for business when you don't feel like turning into the store because you don't feel like waiting. If the light at Spring Garden and Aycock turns green then no one wants to let you turn. And if the light is red then traffic is so backed up that you just rather keep going. Spring Garden is just too small for so much traffic. And now they just opened a Walgreens and it's even worse. All in all the store is convenient, but I'd rather not bother wasting my time driving there!

Going out of Business...

With the economy the way it is there is no wonder so many of the major retailers are bankrupt or going out of business. The main for this economic crisis is because the economy is a recession. Layoffs, job shipped over seas, and unemployments rates have increased within the last two years. The sad news is it doesn't seem to be getting any better either. While peoples in the United States are enduring these hard times and finding ways to survive; we aren't the only ones suffering. Many businesses will be closing stores and laying off due to the recession. There has been over 3.3 billion job losses (Share Cast). Consumers are the main reason businesses keep their heads above water. If they aren't in a predicument to shop, then businesses aren't in the position to grow, or continue to succeed.

Many of our favorite retailers and brands are forced to close their door or let many valuable employees go. It's sad to see this negative transition in their businesses when they have been "well known" and common "household" names for so long. Companies such as Sears, Old Navy, Macy's, Best Buy, Tiffany's, and Ann Taylor are amongst the few who are forced to close their stores. These common retailers will be closing over 100 of their stores and that number could increase. Ann Taylor will be closing atleast117 stores (AOL). Like many other stores Ann Taylor has seen much loss during these trying times. The company is in its fourth- quarter loss of $375.6 million (Business Week). This number is a huge deficit for the company and does not seem to be getting better any time soon. While some may think the company has not had a better marketing strategy, the recession is the main reason for this downfall. At this point in time many people are not looking for lavish and luxury if they can't afford it. Most people are "living trying to make it, or trying to make a living". It's so sad but true that we are in times where we must decide if we want to eat or pay the bills. You have to do both. The job losses have affected paying and making payments on time. Even if people are shopping they have stuck to discount, bargain, and flea markets. Ann Taylor just isn't a retailer one usually thinks of on a low budget. So until the economy begins to look up, I know for a fact Ann Taylor won't be the last company to endure such hardships/ or downfall.

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D96OPJ2O4.htm
http://www.sharecast.com/cgi-bin/sharecast/story.cgi?story_id=2647602

VALS

Wow, I must admit whenever I took the survey it was going to be inaccurate. Apparently, I am an experiencer, and my second choice, was a striver. I definitely consider myself to be an individual and one who loves fashion. This is one of the reasons I am in CARS department. I can't deny that I'm usually grabbing that candy bar, or candy at the register when checking out too. So yes I am some what of an impulse buyer. Although I am not at the status I want to be in life, I will one day be there. So that will be all the more of a reason to continue to "keep up with the Jones' ". Fashion is a way I like to express myself, and for the most part it makes me happy. I do care what people think of me to a certain degree. I feel that a positive image is important to maintain. You have to make a difference in life, and what better way to do that than be true to yourself. Although, the way the VALS segment explains the experiencer as being a little shallow; I will agree with the survey. Shallowness is definitely not an attribute I'd like to brag about.
As for the target market for REI, I don't believe their description goes along with my survey. The retailer our group presented was for a male or female into sporting and outdoor adventures. It's clear that this type of group would definitely be the "Makers". Whenever I think of fishing and outdoors, fashion and trendsetting does not come to mind. I believe those individuals who are in touch with outdoors are more in tuned with things that aren't as demanding on their lifestyles. "Experiencers" and "Strivers" can't comapre to "Makers" they are two different types of individuals, and probably don't share interest when making purchases.

In the Beginning!

As I stated before Target by far is one of my favorite retailers. Today Target is the fifth largest retailer in the United States. This retailer is the employer of three hundred and sixty six thousand employees. Target is only located in the United States, but it currently consist of one thousand, five hundred, and ninety one stores. This major retail store chain was not always this way! It took time, great efforts, and change in order to get to where it is today.
Before Target became a major retailer with featured designers; it took on several changes. The very first Target was opened in 1962 in Roseville, Minnesota. Before it become a Target it was known as the Dayton Company. Originally, the Dayton Compay was owned by George Dayton in 1902. Between the years of 1902-1962 the company went from being a department store to evetually a retail chain. Amongst the traditional Target there are super Target's as well. The current owner/ chairman is Robert J. Ulrich. Target Corporation is ranked as number 31 of the Fortune 500 companies.

Target

My favorite retailer is Target. I like Target because it's just like Wal-Mart but only better. Target has fairly decent customer service, which is much more than I can say for Wal-Mart. Atleast at Target an employee offers to help, and not just hurry up and walk past you. Target has more fashionable choices when it comes to apparel and clothing. I can find any of the latest trends there. The quality of the clothes are better than any other retailer such as Wal-Mart or K-Mart. I can find cute jewelry, clothes, shoes, anything you name I can gt it there. When I am shopping there I can enjoy a latte or frappucinno for my shopping. There is usually a Starbucks located in every location of Target. So I can enjoy any hot or cold beverage for my shopping delight. I love that there is a Starbucks there; I makes my visit to Target that much better. I love the whole atmosphere of Target. The people are more friendly there too. Music playing, friendly employees, and everything is so much easier to find. I belive the reason the atmosphere is so much better is because Target stores are so much cleaner. I don't have to worry about shelf items being all torn apart, or display items open. The customers and employees take pride in their store. Last, but never least, Target features a new designer upon every upcoming season. I love this about Target because I'm always eager to see what this new designer has to offer. Sometimes I just visit because I want to see what's new. Target will forever have a place on my list whenever it comes to retailer. It is by far a favorite.