Big W have announced they will be shutting down 30 stores over the next three years in the face of dwindling sales and multimillion dollar losses.
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It's an all-too familiar story for Griffith shoppers, who are still reeling from the time when Griffith Big W closed its doors on April 15 last year.
Yet from the ashes of Big W will rise a new Kmart, which is slated to open at the same building in the coming months.
Kmart's balance sheet is currently looking a lot greener, recording an eight per cent increase in total sales and a $660 pre-tax profit over the 2018 financial year.
The Area News hit the street to ask local business owners whether they were nervous about the prospect of a new Kmart siphoning away their customers.
Sylvia's Boutique owner Sylvia Vardanega said she wasn't worried at all, saying she welcomed a new Kmart to Griffith.
"It adds a bit more variety, and I think it'd be a good thing for the town," Mrs Varganega said.
She said she didn't notice a difference in foot traffic before and after Big W closed down, and she didn't expect there would be much of a difference if a Kmart set up shop.
Active Workwear owner Melissa Harrison said she also didn't notice much of a difference after Big W closed down, adding that she welcomed a new Kmart to Griffith.
"It's somewhere different to go, and it's one of those places you can get anything," she said.
"We're busy most of the time, so it wouldn't affect us much."
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Some business owners told The Area News that online shopping was the bigger culprit when it came to flagging retail sales.
Some said they've been feeling the pinch more and more over the years as younger shoppers abandon brick-and-mortar stores in favour of online shopping.
But others said it's been business as usual for them, saying that the foot traffic to their shop front has remained as strong as it's ever been.
Most said they were optimistic about the future, both for themselves and for the rest of Griffith.
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Kenji Sato
Kenji Sato is a handsome journalist at The Daily Advertiser who enjoys writing flattering bios about himself in the third person. He can be contacted by email at kenji.sato@dailyadvertiser.com.au or by mobile on 0448 927 612.
Kenji Sato is a handsome journalist at The Daily Advertiser who enjoys writing flattering bios about himself in the third person. He can be contacted by email at kenji.sato@dailyadvertiser.com.au or by mobile on 0448 927 612.
