American consumers have shifted their purchasing habits due to various factors, including experience spending versus material goods and homes, casual fashion in relaxed dress codes, as well as the rise of e-commerce[4] and particularly juggernaut companies such as Amazon.com and Walmart.

A 2017 Business Insider report dubbed this phenomenon the "Amazon effect" and calculated that Amazon.com was generating more than half of retail-sales growth.

Crew, Century 21, Neiman Marcus, Lord & Taylor, Stage Stores, Stein Mart, JCPenney, Tuesday Morning, and Pier 1 Imports.

[14] Media appropriated the term to refer to multiple brick-and-mortar store closures resulting from shifts in consumer spending.

[7][21] As of May 2020, bankruptcies and store closings were expected to intensify due to widespread business closures and the resulting financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Crew, Century 21, Neiman Marcus, Stage Stores, Stein Mart, Lord & Taylor, JCPenney, Tuesday Morning, and Pier 1 Imports were among the first major retailers to file for bankruptcy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

[26] A major reported contributing factor to the supposed retail decline is an ongoing "restaurant renaissance"— a shift in consumer spending habits for their disposable income from material purchases such as clothing towards dining out and travel.

[3] Another cited factor is the "death of the American middle class" represented by declining real wages and rising costs creating a middle-class squeeze, resulting in large-scale closures of retailers such as Macy's, JCPenney, and Sears which traditionally relied on spending from this market segment.

The focus on short-term balance sheets induces management to understaff retail stores in order to keep profits high.

Buyers stated that they would deliberately buy products from such categories as food and drinks, hygiene, household cleaning, clothing, health, and consumer electronics online rather than in person due to COVID-19.

[37] In June 2020, retail research firm Coresight reported that they estimated that the number of store closures due to the pandemic and ensuing recession would exceed the 2019 record of 9,302.

Filed February 2023; announced liquidations in April Researchers say retailers' survival may be tied to customer experience and brand reputation.

[72] In 2020, Monash University in Australia said the three key factors were delivering a "great in-store retail experience", customer-targeted stock offerings, and "seamless omnichannel integration".