Mini Boxes

Not opening stores just because the economy is bad doesn’t look good, so some retailers are opening smaller stores instead, reports Kritina Shevory in the New York Times (5/20/09). Lowe’s, for instance, has slowed down its store openings, from 115 last year to just 60 or 70 this year. But it has also opened two smaller stores of 66,000 to 80,000 square feet, scaled down from the usual 117,000 square feet. This saves Lowe’s about 10 percent, or $1.9 million per store. But the reasoning for Lowe’s, and others, is not pure economics.

"Consumers want stores that are more convenient, less time-consuming and more personal," says Ben Ball of Dechert-Hampe & Company, a consulting firm. "There is such a thing as too much variety." To that point: "Downsized or concept stores are more convenient and take less time to visit than a large store. Lines are typically shorter, and the shopping aisles can be easier to navigate. In some ways, retailers are going back to their roots, evoking the corner store. At many new stores, personalized service is being emphasized, like explaining the features of a product."

Imagine that. OfficeMax is experimenting with "three new concept stores in the Seattle area that offer a pared down selection of its most popular products." The stores are called Ink Paper Scissors and measure just 2,000 square-feet, "about a ninth the size of a typical OfficeMax — and offer basics like copy-making supplies and printer-cartridge refills." Walmart meanwhile has opened "four specialty food stores in the Phoenix area, RadioShack has unveiled three high-end wireless shops in Dallas and Best Buy has created 30 mobile phone stores."