Will Small Businesses Face The Brunt Of Retail Closures?

Investment banking firm UBS predicts that one in five retail stores will close over the next five years, with significant losses in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. What does this mean for small businesses that might feel the most impact, and what does that mean for the folks on main street?

Voice of B2B, Daniel Litwin talked with Nick Mathews, CEO of Mainvest, a company focused on aligning incentives between local community members and small businesses to encourage Main Street economic development, on MarketScale TV about which sectors are going to feel the most impact.

The information coming out of UBS is no joke, as it’s predicted that in a worst-case scenario, 150,000 stores will be lost over the next five years. The best-case scenario is to lose only 81,000. Small businesses are expected to be hit hardest, with small companies not having the financial resources available to weather the storm. The industries that are going to be hit the most are clothing, electronic, and furniture stores.

 

“One of the interesting things people aren’t talking about is new business creation,”

Nick Mathews, CEO of Mainvest

 

“One of the interesting things people aren’t talking about is new business creation,” Mathews said. He noted that in the third quarter of 2020, there was 1.7 times the amount of businesses created, and the cycle of new companies coming in has to be weighed with the businesses going out.

“The new businesses coming are going to be adapting to this new climate and improving the retail space,” Mathews said.

 

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

technology
Clarity Under Pressure: Technology, Trust, and the Future of Public Safety
February 7, 2026

When something goes wrong in a community—a major storm, a large-scale accident, a violent incident—there’s often a narrow window where clarity matters most. Leaders must make fast decisions, responders need to trust the information in front of them, and the systems supporting those choices have to work as intended. Public safety agencies now rely…

Read More
weather Intelligence
Clarity in the Storm: Weather Intelligence, GIS, and the Future of Operational Awareness
February 6, 2026

For many organizations today, weather has shifted from an occasional disruption to a constant planning factor. Scientific assessments show that extreme weather events—including heatwaves, heavy rainfall, and wildfires—are occurring more frequently and with greater intensity, placing growing strain on infrastructure, utilities, and public services. As weather-related disruptions become more costly and harder to manage,…

Read More
AI in sterile processing
AI in Sterile Processing Is Proving Its Value by Acting as a Co-Pilot, Not a Replacement
February 5, 2026

Sterile processing departments are dealing with persistent operational pressures. Surgical case volumes are rising, instruments are more complex, and staffing shortages remain across many health systems. Accuracy and documentation requirements continue to tighten, leaving little room for error. In busy hospitals, sterile processing teams may handle 10,000 to 30,000 surgical instruments per day, with…

Read More
IC-SAT100
Meet IC-SAT100, a Satellite PTT Radio Built for the World’s Most Demanding Environments
February 5, 2026

Let’s have a look at Icom’s IC-SAT100, a satellite Push-To-Talk radio designed for moments when ordinary communication just isn’t an option. Powered by the Iridium satellite network, this rugged handheld delivers instant one-to-many communication at the push of a button—no cell towers or ground infrastructure required. Built to thrive in harsh environments, it’s waterproof,…

Read More