The brick & mortar story is making the network news these days. This morning I heard -
-- about 1700 retail store locations will close this year
-- malls were overbuilt starting in the 1970's at 2X population growth
-- 85% of retail sales are still brick & mortar
-- Amazon gets 45% of all online retail sales (WOW!)
-- There is agreement that; for success in brick & mortar retail, the retailers have to offer something "more" like supporting YouTube videos, frequent shopper discounts - basically a REASON to shop there (other than charming personalities).
I ONLY HOPE RETAIL FLY SHOPS ARE READING or watching the news.

It's not just retail stores either. A lot of companies are moving to work from home alternatives for their employees. My employer cut down 3 full floors of space this year by letting us work from home 3 days a week and rotating us in and out of the office. That was close to 100 employees per floor probably 7k sqft per floor; and that's was just the Dallas office. They did they same across the nation and almost every employer in my industry has been doing the same over the past few years.

So is it a good thing that happened at your company? As dangerous as driving in North Texas is, I bet a change like that saves lives. It probably helps the environment too. Working from home does take a lot of self discipline though! I know some OLD guys who kept their business locations just so they would have a place to go and open their mail.

yep its a good thing, for both the company and us employees. But since we are at home it probably leads us to do more online shopping.

Texas has too much reliance on Property Taxes for funding. It puts a huge burden on Landlords and ultimately Tenants. Commercial Property Taxes get paid no matter if a concern is having a good year or bad. It literally tips the scales to where businesses decide to cease operations. Income and or sales taxes are based on profitability or sales. Bad years, less gets collected. Property Taxes have become a detriment to our economy in this state. Most states funding systems are not structured like this.

That is somewhat true. Ag exemptions and land grants to State Universities (oil) consume a lot of potential base. In Denton, roughly 23% of our land mass is exempt from taxes, and if you live to 65? Guess what, your property tax is frozen. Do away with the property tax, and say hello to a State income tax. A million people a year are moving into Texas. $26-billion dollars was exported to Mexico last year from other countries. Heck, I'd be happy with only a million or so of that! What if the US's fraction (probably a huge fraction) of the $26-billon was taxed and spent here? Food for thought.

If you believe the retail space has issues try working for a newspaper.. the slow steady decline over the last 10 years is accelerating towards the inevitable end of the print publishing business. With little to no profit and no cost cutting left it will end.

It does not matter if what you do is important (in business) to the world in any way it will stop when there is no profit to keep it going.

Each and every one of us can only do what we have the resources to do.

There are two ways to ensure a funeral is well attended..

Leave a legacy of love and laughter...

Or leave owing a bunch of money