NEW YORK — When big retail chains close stores, it can be a blow or a blessing for small businesses near the shuttered merchants.
Many shoppers gravitate to a smaller store when one of the big players shuts down, said Aric Shlifka, the owner of Kiddles Sports in Lake Forest, Ill. The demise of the Sports Authority last year has contributed to a 5 percent rise in business for him since then, and he’s noticed more demand for athletic shoes and bicycles in particular.
“I feel mass-chain store closings scare people and make them realize how many jobs and tax dollars are lost and want to support the local retailers more,” Mr. Shlifka said.
As more shoppers shift online, stores have been suffering and chains have been cutting back. Macy’s is closing some stores. Sears Holdings Corp. reportedly plans to close 66 Sears and Kmart stores, adding to 150 closings in April. Many of the closings are in big malls, but in smaller strip-shopping centers, hundreds have been shutting down too.
Sales of some businesses suffer when a big nearby retailer that has been a shopper magnet disappears. But smaller competitors can pick up customers, and sometimes other businesses — ancillary or unrelated to retail — find opportunities in vacant real estate.
The remains of a shuttered store mean franchisees of 1-800-GOT-JUNK? often get contracts to load dump trucks with unwanted mannequins, shelving, racks, showcases, and other fixtures and hauling it away.
Executives at 1-800-GOT-JUNK? often know in advance when stores will be closing, said Scott Perry, an account manager with the franchise. It often can take a month to remove and cart off the items; franchisees have handled 150 truckloads from a closed Macy’s in Pittsburgh and 120 from a Bon-Ton in Sheboygan, Wis, Mr. Perry said.
James Williams, owner of a 1-800-GOT-JUNK franchise in Burbank, Calif., said his company donates usable equipment like vacuum cleaners to charities and takes furniture and fixtures to businesses that will recycle what they can.
When a department store in a shopping mall or big box store in a strip center closes, nearby retailers can see fewer shoppers and lower sales. Some mall operators have staged events and activities near the shuttered stores to attract more shoppers.
Yogibo, which sells bean bag chairs and other casual furniture, had to work harder to make itself more visible to shoppers after Sears left part of its stores in malls in Freehold, N.J., and Danbury, Conn., CEO Eyal Levy says. Sales slid by 10 percent while the Sears space was vacant, and its sales fell since a J.C. Penney store shut in Natick, Mass. two years ago.
So it has increased its advertising, offering its chairs to mall operators for events such as children’s story hours. “We couldn’t rely on mall foot traffic,” Mr. Levy said.
First Published June 16, 2017, 4:00 a.m.
