Can Retail Bounce Back?

Despite the overwhelmingly optimistic predictions that retail would make a huge recovery and bounce back in 2022, it didn't happen as most people thought it would. People around the world thought that once the pandemic was in our rearview mirror that retail would bounce back and would once again become a missed and much-anticipated activity to regain normalcy.?

Unfortunately, it hasn't happened. In fact, most retail stores have been forced out of business due to mandated shutdowns and shopping restrictions. This was a blow to the brick-and-mortar retail industry. One that many stores, even popular retail chains, could not survive.?

Rising Popularity of E-commerce

Electronic commerce, e-commerce for short, is the popular activity of buying and selling any product or service that you can imagine over the internet. When covid turned the world upside down in 2019, 2020, and 2021, everyone still had basic needs despite the mandated shutdowns of stores worldwide.?

Prior to covid, the e-commerce industry had been working on a solid plan to basically change everything from a brick-and-mortar retail excursion to a highly convenient, less time, no-hassle shopping experience for consumers. They had planned from the beginning to replace the physical shopping expedition of spending the time and gas to travel, long lines of retail stores, and the overwhelming complaint of unhelpful staff with a much simpler, consumer-friendly encounter.?

Even now when people are starting to recover from the pandemic nightmare, many consumers still find it difficult for their brick-and-mortar stores to carry the items that they want. Deliveries are still delayed, some companies and warehouses have shut down and so bringing the goods to the physical stores is not bouncing back in a timely fashion, which displeases customers. This makes consumers want to turn to the internet in order to buy what they desire. If the stores can't physically get the items that they need, they will immediately turn to the internet in order to purchase what they're looking for.

E-commerce Trends That Consumers Crave?

The trends of e-commerce are keeping consumers interested and wanting more. There are many reasons that shopping online appeals to most shoppers. Convenience and not having to spend the gas for travel, are a couple of the leading reasons why buying on the internet makes more sense. Even people who did not buy from online stores prior to covid found that it was an easy and convenient method when they were forced to buy online instead of shopping at a physical location. The pandemic opened the eyes of new customers that might not have ever ventured to shop online.

Now that online retail has such a large and overwhelming customer base, these e-commerce stores are coming up with new ways for people to spend their money. To be honest, consumers are very happy about it.

Take for instance shopping online using your smartphone. Over half of all online sales are done via phone. So, it doesn't matter where you are- if you think you want something or come across an idea you can immediately shop instead of giving yourself time to talk yourself out of it. This is boosting revenue for that industry.?

Of course, social commerce which is the marketing and ability to buy when visiting your favorite social media sites brings in a large share of the overall e-commerce industry as well.?

Aside from these very important aspects of why e-commerce is so much more popular and will outlive brick-and-mortar retail stores, is that every store online has the potential to sell to a Global Market and are not confined by a geographical location. Companies do not have to buy real estate in order to sell in any particular area. For many stores, this was the only option that allowed them to survive the financial hardship that covid left in its wake.?

What Does it Mean for OUR Industry?

As the stores shut down they leave behind empty buildings that are not only an eyesore but a harsh memory of the way life used to be. Communities struggle when these stores shut down. People lose their jobs and in some cases have to move in order to find work elsewhere.

The good news is that there is a solution to this problem. What if other businesses could move into these empty buildings and turn them into money-making and job-creating opportunities.

I have the solution for these commercial real estate nightmares! It not only benefits the owners of the distressed property but also the community in which they are located. I encourage you to read my next article which maps out a logical and realistic strategy for these abandoned buildings that are depreciating in value every day.

Have you read an article I’ve published here on LinkedIn and want to talk about the topic a little more? If you’d like to book a call with me regarding the Family Entertainment Industry or Private Equity, please feel free. I enjoy connecting & collaborating with others in the same professional space.

Tim Murphy is CEO of APX Operating Company, dba Boomers Parks, under the ownership of Cerberus private equity ($60B assets). Boomers Parks owns six family entertainment centers and two water parks with locations in California, Florida, and New Jersey.

As CEO of Boomers Parks since 2020, Tim took these eight parks from bankruptcy to profitability in just a year – in the middle of a global pandemic. When Boomers acquired these parks, they were operating at a $10 million loss. Tim transformed the customer experience and added new revenue streams to generate a 180% increase in revenue in 2021 and on a similar trajectory in 2022.

Tim launched his 35+ year career at Walt Disney World and has since served more than 150 entertainment, restaurant, and food & beverage brands across more than 10,000 locations in C-suite and senior positions.

Additionally, Tim is a Board Director with Coney Park & Happy City - Family Entertainment & Amusement Parks, part of The Carlyle Group ($276B assets), a private equity firm that operates 150+ family entertainment centers and amusement parks in Latin America.?

Tim has worked with top-tier entertainment and restaurant brands including Disney, Rebounderz Trampoline Parks, Darden Restaurants (Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, etc.), Red Lobster, Jimmy John’s, Applebee’s, Sonny’s Bar-B-Q, Denny’s, El Pollo Loco, Hardee’s, Golden Corral, and Firehouse Subs.

Tim has overseen more than 35 purchase transactions involving over 1,200 restaurants, stores, and park locations.? With extensive experience in buying and selling businesses, handling negotiations with buyers and sellers, and creating strategic partnerships to build strong brands, Tim has facilitated deals ranging from $11 million to $350 million+.

Tim is a member of International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions (IAAPA), California Attractions and Parks Association (CAPA), Florida Attractions Association (FAA), American Amusement Machine Association (AAMA), National Restaurant Association (NRA), California Restaurant Association (CRA), World Waterpark Association (WWA) and International Franchising Association (IFA). He is a licensed commercial real estate broker in the State of Florida. Tim earned a BS/BA in Accounting from the University of Central Florida and an MBA in Finance from Orlando College.