Retail Workers Will Soon Cater Mainly to the Rich

One reason the U.S. government is investigating Amazon.com Inc. for antitrust violations is concern that the company is undermining the retail industry. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin says flatly that Amazon “has destroyed the retail industry across the United States.” The number of retail jobs has indeed fallen over the past few years — if so far only slightly. Going forward, the jobs that remain will also shift focus: Retail workers will increasingly cater to wealthier, rather than middle-class, consumers.

The trend is already visible in struggling malls and big box stores. The Toys “R” Us bankruptcy single-handedly did away with tens of thousands of jobs. Gymboree, Charlotte Russe and Payless lead the list of other middle-class retailers that have gone bankrupt in recent months.