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The trouble with Big W: don't blame online for killing discount department stores

  • Written by Gary Mortimer, Associate Professor in Marketing and Consumer Behaviour, Queensland University of Technology

After weeks of speculation, Woolworths has confirmed it will close 30 of its Big W stores in Australia, as well as two distribution centres. This represents about 16% of its 183-strong network.

The obvious culprit, and the one identified by many analysts, is online shopping.

As one industry analyst explained: “The physical department store...

Read more: The trouble with Big W: don't blame online for killing discount department stores

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