Committed to the High Street

I do feel sad if high street retail continues to decline. Always been a fan, wouldn't like to see it go, but it is increasingly becoming inevitable. I understand now a bit more why. 


Now when you, the consumer want to obtain a good or a service, you need to pay. There’s money involved which you need to commit to obtaining the good/service you want. There’s also a duration between the moment you commit money, and the moment you acquire, more accurately, consume the good/service. That duration is critical.


People like to keep the duration as short as possible. Instant consumption. Or even better, consume first, pay later - like in an up-scale restaurant. For various reasons some goods/services have a long money commitment, like furniture, a house, a car, health care. Even if you don’t pay a full amount of cash upfront, you still need to commit to the whole amount at some point.


High Street retail only works if that commitment remains short, or at least cannot be offered shorter. Restaurants - home deliveries notwithstanding - have a place there. Luxury goods, jewelry, artwork too. (Because when was the last time you were comfortable with paying $25.000 for a watch you have only seen a picture of.) 


High Street retail doesn't work for entertainment media anymore, like music, movies and video games. The digital route is increasingly a more viable alternative to consume the good, opposed to traveling all the way up to the high street and picking it up in person. Even ordering via a website and having the media delivered is a better alternative nowadays. Strangely enough clothing is also heading this way.



Also the mindset of people is changing. Rather than pay-to-own, people realize that owning a good makes no sense if you don't actually get to USE it. Especially in rough economic conditions, people are more conscious what they actually spend time on. And owning something for the sake of owning increasingly becomes the luxury of only the rich and famous. So too will be the visit to High Street retail.