Nationwide Toys R Us Closure Makes Me Wonder If Toy Stores Are Finished
I'm a fan of tradition. I love that people live in homes that are 90 years old. I love that strip malls can still thrive after 50-some-odd years. I like that I can still go into a bookstore, even though I don't buy books (there's the library, you know).
But I also like technology.
So maybe I'm part of the problem because I do enjoy the convenience of Amazon.
Of course, that massive online retailer is almost always blamed when this chain or that chain shutters and there's probably merit in that belief.
Toys R Us announced this week that all their stores are going to close. I have to say that I'm not surprised.
While CNNMoney doesn't think Amazon should shoulder all the blame, the age in which we live (which includes the convenience of online shopping) just has to be part and parcel to this development, right?
(Oh, and if you have a Toys R Us gift card, you have thirty days from the announcement to use it.)
Borders Books & Music was killed off for this reason and that's been years ago. (Which means, for the time being, you have to hand it to folks like Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million.)
So where do those of you who BUY toys buy them? IS it just easier to shop with the click of a button? Do you hit the big box stores at Christmas or when there's a birthday because you know they'd be cheaper than a specialty store like a toy store?
Are we coming to a place in society where we never have to leave the house? I hope not, but, hey, more and more people, as we move through the generations, are seeking the most convenient and easiest route to a destination.
As busy as we are, who can blame them?
We're dealing with quite a two-edge sword, aren't we?