Amazon was founded in 1994 and went public in 1997. By 1999, some 5 years after the company was started, only about 1% of total retail sales were being done online in the US. So you have to give it to Bezos, he saw what was coming and he got in early to help create it. This was not so obvious back in the mid 90s. The internet as a whole was still being viewed with skepticism, especially after the dot-com bubble.
Today, online shopping represents over 15% of total retail sales. (See above chart from Charlie Bilello.) The pandemic pop is over, but it looks like we've returned to a pretty clear trendline -- up and to the right. I guess the questions now are: When and where does this start to flatline? It doesn't seem likely that this goes to 100% in the foreseeable future, especially if you include grocery. But it's going to go a lot higher.
I recently asked this on Twitter:
You live in an apartment/condominium. If you could pick one ideal use/tenant for the ground floor of your building, what would it be?
And a number of people responded.
But I suppose I should also answer my own question.
I lean more towards utility. My ideal use -- assuming an urban storefront -- is not a fancy restaurant or a super cool coffee shop. It would be some sort of quality bodega that:
Sells essential grocery needs (milk, eggs, toilet paper, etc.)
Sells wine & beer
Has a deli/food counter where you can buy a breakfast bagel, a sandwich for lunch, or a quick dinner when you're in a pinch
And, yes, has pretty good coffee
It would also need to be open early and late: 7am to 12am, please.
What would you want?
