Thoughts on the Economy

There is a new Cabela’s in our region. It is magnificent and a testament to what humans can build and produce. There is the flagship Cabela’s, all of the adjacent tenant stores, and all of the other land developments eagerly awaiting the customers that this flagship brand will bring to their cash registers.

But when I go in there to buy some bullets, there are only a few customers at the checkout. Far less customers than at the local grocery store. I estimate that there are fewer customers in the store, on average, than there are employees.

This project was most likely conceived at some corporate meeting following the 2004 IPO. The funding was obtained shortly thereafter.

This Cabela’s, which I love, is a bank loan that will not be made full. It is a business model from another time, turned into brick and mortar a little too late. Cabela’s IPO’d at $29/share, and is currently trading at $11/share. Stores #27, #31, #32, and #34 are now ‘on hold’.