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It's been a tough year for retail. The proof is in the stores.
Often, when a company is struggling internally, the effects can be observed in person. In the case of Sears and Bed Bath & Beyond, their announced store closures and drops in sales were not surprising after we saw the state of each store.
Both were punctuated by issues with organization and cleanliness.
However, sometimes - as in the case of Target - a disorganized and chaotic store environment isn't symptomatic of larger struggles for the company. For example, we visited a Manhattan Target in August and were shocked by the mess we found, but the company beat expectations in the second quarter of 2019 and reported a 3.4% growth in comparable sales.
From Urban Outfitters to Sears, here are the top seven messiest stores we've seen so far.
The store was completely overcrowded with racks upon racks of clothes and many pieces were on sale.
Like in JCPenney, some mannequins here were also missing important appendages.
Mess was apparent all throughout Sears. The accessories section was pretty disturbing and featured dozens of items bursting from white cardboard boxes.
In the women's section, we found a lone fan on the floor.
And in the men's section, we found this back-to-school sign sadly laying on its side.
Some of the signs had prices written by hand, which gave the store an unprofessional feeling.
Upstairs in the home section, we found an almost completely empty corner.
The story was different in the intimates section, which was almost too cluttered to navigate.
The kid's shoes section was also filled with mess and clutter.
Bed Bath & Beyond — We visited a location in Manhattan's Tribeca neighborhood.
Bed Bath & Beyond is infamous for its overstocked displays and massive shelves.
At first, the main issue with the store seemed to be the overwhelming clutter. We also saw some wires protruding from the ceilings throughout the store.
Though in some areas, the shelves were almost completely empty.
The outdoor furniture section was completely disorganized ...
... and nearby, we found an open can of LaCroix.
The aisles in the store were punctuated by rows of shopping carts that took up valuable walking space.
And it wasn't rare to find sections that were overrun with piles of what seemed like garbage and miscellaneous items.
A loft area on the first floor was in the process of being restocked, so it was naturally messier than usual.
This area had a lot of empty shelves and boxes of merchandise waiting to be unloaded.
Downstairs, the mess was even worse. An employee told us that this was normal for the store.
In many cases, it looked like items were being restocked on the shelves.
The mess permeated almost every department on this floor, from clothes to groceries.
The grocery section was particularly appalling. Garbage appeared to be strewn across the floor.
And in the back of the store, an even more daunting mess awaited. Though we saw a lot of messy stores, Target was by far the messiest and most disconcerting of them all. Surprisingly, it was also one of the stores doing the best in terms of sales.
