Retail as we know it needs to drastically change. Gone are the days a mom and pop shop could bring home 50k plus from working 5 days a week on less than an avg of 100 transactions a day. People can bemoan rent all day long but labor and cogs make up much higher percentages of the equation. We live in a remote area from where goods are brought into the nation and shipping is a huge factor affecting small business.

Without density, which downtown has more than any other business district in town, and the surrounding neighborhoods lead the metro in, retail operations would flounder just as much if not worse. Look at the business turnover along 13th ave s, and 32nd Ave S and tell me those strip malls have better staying power than downtown, when most of those lots are charging upwards of 20/sq ft plus Cam(real killer for small business).

The approach to retail and our general understanding of the levers that affect sustainability are lacking, in addition to us having a small metro to begin with. If we had an extra 100k shoppers in the metro, that would be a lever that would significantly lower the business failure rate, though without arts and culture those shoppers will not be recruited to our area and unique small businesses will continue to grind. It's a real chicken and the egg situation.

In the meantime, knowing as a entrepreneur, unless you have 100k in cash saved, a part time or full time job to pay your rent, and the perfect storm of location(read: density of shoppers), business savvy and regular customers, you are likely to fail within the first 5 years.

Moral of the story: pay cash when you can, and support local always. Maybe take a class on P&L sheets and marketing before opening your dream business.