Going, Going, any one noticed?

I noticed something odd, but didn't pay much attention to it.

Stores close here in the SF Bay area here almost on a daily basis. I see it in my travels as I log usually 400 to 700 miles a week traveling around.

Have any of you noticed the number of "vintage", second hand, and consignment stores that have disappeared? I'm not talking about Thrift Town, Goodwill, or the Salvation Army. I'm talking about places that had good quality, gently worn, nearly new apparel.

In keeping with the retail theme:

Ross, Loehmanns, Marshalls and similar stores seem to be doing okay. The Ross stores I've been in lately have seem to have had lighter traffic than I remember, as well as Marshalls.

There's a new mall out in the community of Brentwood (between Discovery Bay and Antioch along Highway 4). It's been open since last year. Many of the spaces still say "coming soon". I wonder how these places are defining "soon".

A co-worker was telling me about a store he set up. It was a high end salon/boutique. He said it was a really sharp looking store. All mirrors and chrome. He went by the place two weeks later and the glass was papered over with "space available" signs. Neighboring businesses told him it never even opened even though it was fully stocked and had employees.

The really cool fallout from this "contraction" is that there aren't as many annoying used car commercials on the air.