At a time when Internet shopping is booming, Martha Stewart’s company plans to shut down its online store and catalog next month, Newsday reported today.
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. is holding a “final tag sale” on its Web site, marthastewart.com. Only magazine subscriptions and flowers will continue to be sold online after February, the newspaper said.
The move comes as retailers such as Home Depot rush to expand their Web offerings. And the National Retail Federation reported that online purchases soared 25 percent during the holidays to $23 billion.
Experts questioned why Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, an early entrant in Internet retailing, is throwing in the towel, the report said.
Others said the company, battered by its namesake’s legal troubles, is attempting to bolster the bottom line by eliminating a money-losing division.
The clearance sale appears to be popular, with much of the merchandise already picked over, Newsday said.
Some categories only have a half-dozen products still in stock. But the range is broad, from wine journals ($12 to $34) and Danish Fern dinnerware ($19-$189) to label makers ($9-$45) and Highland Twill Garden Boots ($34).
Company spokeswoman Elizabeth Estroff said only a few hundred types of products remain.
She also said the Web site would be redesigned in late February to emphasize flower sales, which doubled last year compared with 2003, along with subscriptions, the report said.
“The print and online catalog had not been profitable and was not tracking to achieve profitability,” she said.
Still, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia hasn’t written off future online ventures.
“We are looking at a number of new merchandising opportunities,” said Estroff, “and will pursue the sales channel that is most appropriate to deliver those products to consumers
