The volatile retail landscape is hitting retail employees the hardest

The ongoing shakeups in the retail world have had major effects on department stores and retailers across the board, but it’s always the employees and workers, the people who actually operate those stores day in and day out, who end up feeling the biggest impact.

Having just announced the closure of 125 stores, Macy’s is the most recent example of the challenges facing modern retailers. But many stores are overextended and not adapting to ways that consumers shop today.

“It’s a perfect storm for retail right now,” said Scott Stuart, CEO of Turnaround Management Association. “Retail has fundamentally changed in the last few years. The big box store is not the go-to, only solution for customers anymore, and the retailers need to adapt.”

But it’s the employees who face the brunt of these shakeups. Macy’s is laying off 2,000 people as part of the store closures, and, according to one anonymous employee, that process has been chaotic, confusing and sudden. When Barneys went bankrupt, 800 people lost their jobs, and in January 2019, retail layoffs were up 92% compared to a year before.

https://www.glossy.co/fashion/the-volatile-retail-landscape-is-hitting-retail-employees-the-hardest