>>41267105
Mattress stores have one of the highest markups of any industry: $15 of materials, $5 labor, $5 shipping, and then sell it "on sale" for $800.
(Traditional) mattresses are an even bigger scam than diamonds.
>>41267252
I forgot to add one reason why stores would be CLOSED in an area.
Many of these properties are owned by giant hedge funds. They paid "X" amount for the property, and charge "Y" amount rent from the store owners. They list these properties as "assets" that they own.
But here's the problem. When the economy goes down they refuse to lower rents to keep the whole property utilized. If they charge 50% of "Y" for rent then the "valuation" of the property becomes 50% of "X". So they would rather have the storefront sit empty than lower the rent (and thus ADMIT) that the property is not worth what they CLAIM it's worth in their assets column.
There's probably 50 TRILLION of assets like this that don't really exist in North America, and the reason why they don't make it illegal to "sit" on properties like this (and make areas "ghost towns") is because it would crash the whole financial system to ADMIT that they have ALREADY lost 50 TRILLION dollars.
Entire sections of some towns are abandoned and shuttered because of this hedge fund bullshit.
FYI. I'm sure there are at least a few "ghost towns" out there that are really DUMBs or secret bases.
I bet they would probably give themselves away within minutes by having unmarked government vehicles roaming around an otherwise blighted abandoned town.
Just go there and see if "black vans" start following you around.