Sellers post, buyers buy, credit cards are debited, and Mrs. Entrepreneur is sitting on a beach somewhere listening to the waves crash between the sounds of little cash register bells in her head. According to this theorem, somewhere in the middle. Here the on-line auction model excels again, bringing millions of strangers in disparate locations together to form a miniature society of perfect capitalism. Furthermore, if all of the employees left the premises one day to test my first theorem, the store would be instantaneously looted by a raving gang of teenage mall-rats. Well my trusty Economist article tells me that The Gap has Internet kiosks in its shops now so that consumers can order things on-line that aren't in stock.
Physical retailers have to try harder.
Take furniture, for example. The market research gurus think that furniture is a good product to sell on-line, but it is expensive to ship. The best I can do is request a catalog by mail or locate a store in my state. The preceding may not be reprinted without the express written consent of Adam B. Hocherman.