Page 4 - Mid Valley Times 10-31-19 E-edition

Thursday, October 31, 2019 | A4 | Mid Valley TiMes Editorial & Opinions
Serving the Readers of the Reedley Exponent, Dimuba Sentinel and Sanger Herald.
A Mid Valley Publishing Newspaper
Founded March 26, 1891, in a two-story building on the corner of 11th and F streets, by A.S. Jones
Fred Hall — Publisher
In my OPINION An 'annual report'
The online dilemma and the community at stake
Rick Curiel — Sanger Editor Jon Earnest — Reedley Editor Dick Sheppard — Editor Emeritus
For those who might read this col- umn on something of a regular basis, you are well aware of my opinion that, although there are owners of the physi- cal facilities, it is my position that the residents this community provide the franchise for us to be a functioning newspaper. We supply the talent and the support and acceptance must come from you!
Perhaps you’ve seen the commercial.
A couple sits on a show- room coach. Daylight shines through the windows of what appears to be modern day fur- niture store. A few customers browse in the background.
The wife picks up the price and tag and simply begins laughing... hysterically. She goes on to share her sudden cause for laughter with her presumed spouse, yes he’s a man, as she shows him both the price tag on the couch next to an image on her smartphone that shows an incredibly lower price on a website from a pop- ular large online retailer.
They laugh, hysterically, together.
As someone who has worked retail, I couldn’t help but feel offended by the com- mercial.
As many more US brick and mortar stores close their doors, many others struggle to keep up with what is being called the fourth industrial revolution. The online industry has created a paradigm shift in today’s global economy and in some areas has left a great chasm, which can seem insur- mountable at times.
Take for example the afore- mentioned furniture store. Given the tremendous price difference in the commer- cial, I can safely assume that it was a representation of a ‘mom-and-pop’ store. There was a time when the ‘mom- and-pop’ store was the staple of middle class America on its way to the upper class. Today, there’s less and less of these stores as larger chains began to dominate the brick and mor- tar landscape.
But now, even some of those larger chains have fallen victim to the new digital plat- form. Recently, Forever 21, whose clothing stores could be found in just about every shopping mall in the nation, announced they were filing
for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In the process, the California-based company said they could be closing as many as 178 stores.
According to one report, more than 8,200 brick and mortar stored have closed their doors just this year. That number is up nearly 40 percent from last year’s total closures of 5,864.
So where did all the shop- pers go?
Well, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce, more and more of them are going nowhere — that is, no- where further than the palm of their hands. Up 14.2 percent from 2017, last year U.S. con- sumers spend nearly $514 bil- lion through online retail.
The biggest problem cur- rent brick and mortar stores face today, especially mom- and-pop stores, is the scale of volume. The same advantage that gave larger box-store chains a distinct advantage at the turn of this century is the same advantage on steroids for the online industry. More volume equals lower costs.
That’s why the poor owner behind the scenes of that fur- niture commercial can only watch in despair as that couple leaves his establishment, per- haps still laughing. He knows there is no way he can com- pete with that online price, for his costs may be more than that online sale price.
It puts more power in the hands of less, putting more and more at the crosswords of this new revolution.
The online demand has al- so threatened to change laws when it comes to tax revenue. Historically, cities (regardless of size) have always benefited from welcoming new busi- nesses to their commercial infrastructure. Not only do such new establishments pro- vide jobs for locals, but the tax revenue has also provided a means for cities to draw on
for upkeep and growth.
Now, Cali-
fornia lawmak-
ers are propos-
ing to change
the way tax
revenue is dis-
tributed when it comes to on- line sales, changing it from ‘point of sale’ (as it has always been) to ‘point of delivery.’
Such a move could be dev- astating for cities like Fresno, and especially Dinuba, which draws as much as $5 million in tax revenue from the Best Buy Distribution Center there. That would all change if bills, such as SB 531, were passed.
Fortunately for Dinuba, and other California cities who benefit from having retailers who provide online sales, Gov- ernor Newsom vetoed SB 531, striking a temporary blow to the notion.
On top of the potential loss of tax revenue, Dinuba has already seen one other draw- back to inviting an online re- tailer into town. When the Best Buy Distribution Center opened in Dinuba it provided jobs for hundreds of locals. However, those jobs have di- minished over recent years as the facility has introduced robotics and AI (Artificial In- telligence) to take over some jobs.
The wave that online sales have created is already in mo- tion and growing with each passing moment. That wave can come crashing in to some retailers, as we have already seen.
Here’s a thought. Go out shopping this holiday season. Visit a mom-and-pop store, even to just appreciate good service. Buy local and invest in your community.
Rick Curiel is Mid Valley Times' Sanger editor.
Given the status of newspapers in general in today's modern news market, it seems entire appropriate that we provide each of you with something along the order of an “annual report.” It outlines our approach to print reporting and its future, which we view as a critical component of the cultural and financial well-being of this area.
To my knowledge, the trio of newspapers that are com- ponents of The Mid Valley Times never have had an offi- cial mission statement. No one thought much about such things more than a century ago when these periodicals began their publication to serve communities here in the Central Valley. All, however, were service driven, because to do otherwise soon places one's enterprise at great risk. This is a lesson learned by many who have fallen along the way. A 100-year-long list of ink stained individuals deserve great credit for factually recording the history of the Val- ley! Some of them you still remember with reverence.
If there were such a mission statement, it would go something like this: The practitioners of journalism who ply their trade at Mid Valley Publishing believe that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the founda- tion of a strong democracy. Ethical journalism endeavors to ensure the free information that is accurate, fair and thorough. All such information gathered should be made available to its end-user at a price affordable by all. We work all week — sometimes days, weekends and evenings — to make the fruits of that labor available to each of you for a mere 50 cents per issue. Consider the amount of in- formation packed into every week's edition. We hope that is a value that is more than fair. It's essentially impossible to find that much worth for a half-dollar anywhere. Pre- fer to read it online? That's OK, too, because we have The Times available in easy-to-read form.
A quick cut to the bottom line confirms that our busi- ness is like every other one in the world today — it's all about the money. We have about 40 of your friends, neigh- bors and relatives who earn a living with Mid Valley Pub- lishing. Those are the same people who shop your stores, dine at your restaurants, buy your cars and bring their old cars to you when they need tires or repairs. Yet, we hear complaints every day from folks who believe “the news should be free.” How does one go about paying sala- ries to hard-working employees, provide insurance, meet California's ridiculous workplace requirements, operate expensive presses and constantly replace computers and manage to provide something free of cost? Basic quality has a price!
Make no mistake, the people we serve are our read- ers and advertisers. Readers, through their support and dedication, provide a rate base for us to be able to sell advertising. Those loyal advertisers are the ones to help underwrite a product which we can deliver at a favorable price and by doing so provide a huge service to this entire community. Whatever your needs of provision, turn first to the folks who appear every week in your Mid Valley Times. They, too, face the same challenges as we in terms of overhead expended to provide service to the residents of these Valley towns.
Those are the merchants who help underwrite so many services that so many take for granted. I don't see much of a contribution from Facebook, Google and the numer- ous other websites in terms of tax base, schools and youth activities. Space restricts my ability to address many other issuesofthis“neweconomy”intoday'scolumn. Expect to see a more serialized look at other concerns as we all attempt to make our way. We believe that mindless surf- ing of the web and texting is selfish — but that's only one man's opinion.
Fred Hall
QUOTE
“An ostentatious man will rather relate a blunder or an absurdity he has committed, than be debarred from talking of his own dear person.”
— Joseph Addison (1672-1719)
Rick Curiel
Letters Policy
MID VALLEY TIMES invites letters from the public on any topic of local relevance. We reserve the right to edit letters for clarity or brevity, and we reserve the right to NOT publish them if they could be deemed libelous or profane. Letters should
be 350 words or less, and bear the author's name, address, and phone number. Letters can be mailed, emailed, submitted via our website, or personally delivered to: Editor, Reedley Exponent, 1130 G St, Reedley CA 93654.
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