Today's retail landscape is defined by flexibility and convenience. If people are shopping on a retail website and an item is out of stock, they aren't going to hold their purchase until merchants get a new shipment.
For many years, brick-and-mortar retailers were fearing "showrooming," which is when consumers head in stores to view a product before buying it online to take advantage of.
Brick-and-mortar retailing is still a cornerstone of operations for many businesses. Merchants devote a tremendous amount of their resources to maintaining the physical components of their businesses.
