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Customer numbers are always a good indication. Never saw a Target, Walmart, Home Depot or Lowes (except just after 5 PM), Giant, or Wegmans with idle employees and near zero customers. Saw that constantly in Kmart, Sears, and Radio Shack.
Stores such as Walmart send corporate managers into stores to, for example, work as bagger. President of FedEx and Southwest Air are repeatedly seen delivering packages or working the aisles. That is essential to know what does and does not work.
Radio Shack is a glaring example. Not only do corporate employees not know what the products do. Once upon a time, Radio Shack parts always came with a description on the back what that part is or does. No longer. How often does Nardelli even buy his own groceries?
Why was Ford in so much trouble back then? Henry Ford did not even drive a car. William Clay does.
One cannot innovate (or make innovations possible) when one's total knowledge comes from business school philosophies and corporate spread sheets. That has been Sears problem for 20 years now. Everyone I know who was hired at Sears was a business or accounting student.
Walked into a Kmart between Christmas and New Years to buy a snow shovel. Sold out. And said no more shovels would be coming. The season was over. They were putting out lawn mowers and other grass implements.
It says which companies will be better investments in ten years. And which ones are on a ten year trek to bankruptcy.
Retail is not dead. But some stores (ie Radio Shack) will not even deliver your purchase to their stores. Their web site no longer says which stores have that product. Even missing were many products routinely found on store shelves. That is when retail is dead. That is what happens when the boss does not come from where the work gets done.
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