A part of the childhoods of many American teenagers died on March 14, 2018 when legendary toy retailers Toys R Us announced that it had filed for bankruptcy and would be closing its doors within the next two months. With the meteoric rise of online shopping, the death of Toys R Us was imminent. E-commerce giants like Amazon and Alibaba have been taking over the retail world, offering a wide variety of products, from children’s toys to home appliances and everything in between, with the added convenience of consumers not having to leave their home to purchase products. Some younger children will not remember when Netflix became the video streaming powerhouse it is today, and how it was one of the contributors to the closing of video rental services like Blockbuster. Once boasting in over nine thousand locations in the United States, Blockbuster’s empire has been reduced to fewer than ten stores in the US, most of which are located in Alaska.

Online shopping has taken over as the main method of retail due to its convenience. Consumers can order products from the comfort of their own homes, and, depending on how much they are willing to pay for shipping, can have the products arrive within twenty-four hours of the purchase of the product. In addition to the time saved by shopping online, consumers favor the wider variety of products offered online compared to physical stores. Amazon is especially dominant in the online shopping world, due to services like Amazon Prime (a monthly or yearly subscription granting the customer faster shipping times), and popular products like the Amazon Kindle tablet and the Amazon Echo “smart speaker”. Even some physical stores, like Walmart, Macy’s and The Home Depot encourage customers to order products from their online stores if the physical location does not carry the exact product the customer wishes to purchase.

Some stores may be expanding to the internet, but others are taking a step backwards. Amazon recently purchased national grocery chain Whole Foods, and launched a cashier-less store known as “Amazon Go” in Seattle. Instead of registers, Amazon Go has gates similar to ones found in subway stations that automatically charge the buyer’s Amazon account for the food and other products they walk out with. Amazon has not yet confirmed whether they will expand Amazon Go throughout the US or just keep the one store in Seattle. Either way, Amazon seems to understand that online shopping may be the wave of the future, but also that some purchases are easier to make at a physical store.

While it seems like anything can be ordered on the internet today, there are still some advantages to making purchases in person. Shopping at a physical location allows for customers to test out the products they look to buy, whether it be trying on clothes or testing out  a kitchen appliance. If a customer finds a product that has some sort of flaw that they still wish to buy, they can often negotiate some sort of discount due to the quality of the product not being up to standard. One industry that still has the majority of their stores in physical locations is the food industry. Some restaurants offer online ordering, but when it comes to groceries, consumers prefer hand-picking their food in order to ensure maximum freshness and to satisfy any sudden desire they have for a certain food. In addition, many states have laws regulating the online sale of alcohol and tobacco, allowing retailers of such products to keep their physical stores open.

Online shopping has not fully taken over the retail world yet, but it is well on its way. The benefits of online shopping are obvious–consumers can browse a vast array of products without having to leave their couch, and are able to purchase such products with the click of a button. Large companies have toppled as a result of the rise online shopping. Still, many consumers enjoy shopping at brick-and-mortar stores, which allow them to test out products, voice their objections to an object’s price and finish their shopping without having to wait for their products to be shipped to them.