By George Anderson
Retailing, it turns out, like nature, abhors a vacuum.
As stores in New York look for ways to cope with the impact of a transit strike that has put thousands in the city on foot, their online extensions and rivals are swooping in to capture unspent holiday dollars from consumers without a strap to hang onto.
Heather Dougherty, an analyst at Nielsen/NetRatings, said, "This is definitely a way to recoup lost sales that they feel from the transit strike."
According to The Associated Press, "Officials from Toys R Us Inc. and Bluefly.com, an online seller of discounted designer apparel, reported big surges in traffic and sales on Tuesday." The transit strike went citywide on the same day.
Moderator's Comment: What type of impact will the NYC transit strike have on online sales this holiday season? Will shoppers in New York that go online to make purchases because of the strike reduce the amount of purchases they make in physical stores in future holidays as a result? - George Anderson - Moderator