Question

Please explain some of the biggest reasons that Toys 'R Us and Sears failed. Do you think these companies could have survived under any circumstances? If so, how could they have survived?

(Rubric: 250 points - The essay is at least 3 sentences long and answers all questions. 200 points - The essay is at least 3 sentences long, but doesn't answer all questions. 150 points - The essay is less than 3 sentences, but answers some questions. 125 or less points - This is a failing score for the question. The answer is worse than that required for 150 points.)   

Answer 1

Both of these companies failed because they lost focus on their main business models.Some of the biggest reasons are as follows-

1-Both the companies failed to establish the strong online presence and their response to market shift to e-commerce was very poor as compared to Amazon etc.

2. Sears diversified too much- In order to increase sales in the 1980s, Sears tried to go after female shoppers.It was trying to sell multiple products which made merchandising very confusing.

3-Sears was not consistent in turning profits since early 2000s ,its last profit was in the year 2010.

4-Sears shed much of its real estate and assets continually to pay off debt.

5- Toys R Us was a very famous brand, but it lacked vision and had very little planning for the future, this turned a market leader into a non-option for the customer.

6-It was also unable to adjust to a big market shift to ecommerce.It was squeezed out of market due to lack of online presence.

7-It was late to introduce new technologies.Toys r us didn’t adapt to new technologies, it just included them as part of the regular store.​

​​These companies could have only survived if they focussed on Customer experience as the centerpiece of their strategy. Paying attention to the challenges and desires of their customers would have helped both the companies rather than just relying on past methods.They should have adapted to online sales in response to the shift in consumer habits.They should have adapted their marketing to social media platforms.