Candy, coffee and flowers appear to be doing well. Before retailers go on-line, Feinberg says, they need to take a close look at their customers and their services. By encouraging local customers to shop on your Web site, you may be discouraging them from visiting your store. However, if you have a product that appeals to people 3,000 miles away, the Internet can be a great way to reach them, he says. But, you have to remember that Internet shopping is nothing more than an electronic catalog and that returns will kill you, as they do with regular catalog sales.
Returns are a tremendous headache in an electronic medium.
But don't be fooled into thinking you're going to get rich selling on the Internet. People love to shop in stores.