When retailers begin the march to bankruptcy, regular customers may notice.
The signs can be hidden, but if you look closely enough, you see things like merchandise not being available in every size or certain shelves being barer than usual.
That happens when a company lacks the cash to pay its vendors or it attempts to space out orders longer in order to push off when the bills come due. Once a lack of money starts affecting whether a retailer can fill its shelves, the end becomes more or less inevitable.
Less merchandise means fewer sales, which simply builds upon the cycle, that’s what happened with bankrupt, and now defunct, retailers Tuesday Morning, Christmas Tree Shops, and Bed Bath & Beyond.
You can’t make money when you have nothing to sell, but customers are more forgiving with retailers than restaurants. It’s not uncommon to go to a thriving store and not find exactly what you want. If that happens, you won’t cross the store off your list and will almost certainly give it at least a few chances to meet your needs.
That’s not true when it comes to struggling restaurants. If you visit a fast-food burger chain and it’s out of burgers or offers meat different from what you expect, that’s not a good sign, and it may be the beginning of the end.
