I found my google search of independent bookstores to be very revealing. While I did know that bookstores were having trouble with the chains and Amazon, I admit I was surprised by how bad it was, and even more surprised that it was the old, established stores having the most trouble.

Last night, out of curiosity, I went looking at independent record stores, and found an interesting stat; there are roughly 2500 record shops left, almost the same exact number as comic shops and book stores. So I googled toy stores, and found that the main trade org. counts 1500 members. In the field of books, there are 1700 members of the ABA, and 800 non-member stores. If the same ratio holds true for toy stores, then they have roughly 2500. Game stores? Couldn't find a statistic, unfortunately. But wouldn't be surprised, based on my knowledge of numbers of comic vs game stores in most small towns, if it is also around 2500.) (P.S. Latest Game and Comic Retailer confirms 1500 - 2500 game stores.)

So, it got me to thinking about all the similiarities.

What has always fascinated me is how each industry remains tunnel-focused on their own business. As if making comparisons to other industries is somehow threatening. Never understood it, possibly because I've never been able to survive as a business being just one pure specialized store. I've always been a hybrid, and I'm more of a hybrid today than I've ever been. Eight different product categories, and with the intention of adding two more (music and movies.) Very few game oriented members of the Game Industry Forum ever visit the Comic Book Industy Alliance, and vice verse, whereas I visit both equally.

First ran into this blinkered thinking with sports cards. No one -- not game people, not comic people, not book people-- wants to admit that there is anything to learn from the sport card fiasco. Whereas, I almost think that there is everything to learn. I constantly look to my sport card experience, almost as a baseline of all the worst things that can go wrong.

So when I read interviews with record stores who talk about an 'age gap', I'm completely surprised by how similar that is to the comic store talk of an 'age gap.' Customers getting older; where will the new customers come from? If you replace the words comics, books, records, toys with the word "widget", the similarities between the industries is amazing.

Also, it seems to me that every single industry I look at seem to focus on the three mantra's of 'service' and 'niche' and 'internet.'

Great. Another way to describe niche product is; product that sells so poorly that the mass market can't be bothered. And oh, by the way, if you happen to succeed in making it a good selling product, the mass market will be glad to come along later and take it off your hands.

Service. Service is like the frosting on a cake. It helps sell the cake better, but it doesn't replace the cake. You still need customers for the cake.

Internet. Fine and good. But that is not being a brick and mortor retailer, is it?

So I've begun to come to some conclusions.

1.) All small retail is threatened by the twin ogres of mass market chains and the internet.

2.) There seems to be a small, irreducible number of shops that specialize in each industry; about 2500 in the ones I've looked at. Like weeds, they hang on.

3.) The middle range, full service shops are the most threatened. The industries that sell commodities are being hit the worst. Hardware and stationary and drug stores can only be so niche before they lose identity. So they are a vanishing breed. The other options are to stay small and specialized and agile. One or two person operations who make a modest living. Or skip the big, full service option and jump to a bigger chain of at least 4 or 5 stores, which mimic the chains stores in selection and price.

The only question I have left is; have we seen the worst? Have the hammer blows from the mass market and the internet been absorbed? Or as the younger generation comes into its own, will it become oh so worst? Has the tide of the mass market chains begun to recede as the internet impacts on them, and as they begine to canniblize their own sales? Can they continue to discount suicidally? Will Amazon ever really turn a real profit?

I guess that's a bunch of guestions, isn't it?