Sad to see some of these stores hurting. Seems like Amazon and online shopping are forcing them to close down many of their stores. I guess I am still old school. I like to go to a store and physically touch/feel what I'm buying.
I can't speak for other stores, but for staples the only stores they are closing if the stores are in a very expensive mall area or they are the second store in the area.
There are some people that can't get out so they are forced to purchase things online. There are others that just can't find what they want in an actual store so they resort to looking for it on the internet. Between that, more people buy online and there are some stores that are feeling the loss to the point that they are forced to close down.
I feel another reason for stores closing is that there are not enough people with money to buy things living in some towns because most people in the town have to move somewhere else to find work, go to college, and do other activities, so there are fewer offline buyers.
Discount stores like the dollar store, Costco, and Wal-Mart are good enough for finding what most people need, so stores like Circuit City, RadioShack, and BestBuy may have fewer costumers because they can't compete with the lower prices of discount stores.
I sometimes buy stuff online, but the price of shipping and handling can be expensive where buying something offline is about the same price or cheaper if there is a sale going on.
I don't buy as much stuff these days. I got most of the stuff I need and want, so I don't have a real need for a new computer, laptop, TV, or other things when my old things are still working, so I am less likely to go into an electronics store.
