[E423]Sitting pretty
本文音频及原文摘自杂志The Economist 2016年第21期，Business版块。
Amazon’s clothing coup
Amazon looks set to conquer America’s clothing market
May 21st 2016
Times are tough for America’s department stores[百货商店;百货店]. This month Macy’s, Kohl’s, JC Penney and Nordstrom all reported slumping[1] sales[销售额暴跌;销售低迷]. Foreign tourists are spending less; consumers are buying other types of goods. Even if they drift back, one threat looks likely to stay: Amazon. In 2011 the online retailer accounted for 1.4% of American sales of clothing, handbags and shoes. Next year Cowen, a financial services firm[金融服务公司], expects it to overtake Macy’s as America’s top seller of apparel[2]. Shoppers like the Amazon’s huge selection (about 19m items), easy shipping and partnerships with brands such as Adidas. Not all traditional retailers are floundering[3]; on May 17th TJX[4] reported a 7% bump in comparable sales. The firm’s stores satisfy those keen to hunt for discounted designer clothes[打折品牌/名牌服装]—a quest hard to mimic online. But Cowen expects even TJX’s clothing sales to be less than half of Amazon’s by 2020.
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注释
[1]slump：(of prices, values or sales) to fall suddenly （价格、价值或销售额）猛跌，突然下降
The value of property has slumped.
房产价值突然下跌。
[2]apparel：clothes of a particular type when they are being sold in a shop （商店出售的某一种类的）衣服，服装
sports apparel
运动服装
[3]flounder：to experience great difficulties or be completely unable to decide what to do or say next 困难重重；艰苦挣扎；不知所措
He lost the next page of his speech and floundered (about/around) for a few seconds.
他把演讲稿的下一页弄丢了，支支吾吾了几秒钟。
[4]TJX Companies, Inc. 是美国和全世界的服装和家庭时尚低价零售商。
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以上言论不代表本人立场。
原文摘自The economist，仅外语学习之用。
其中生词解释来源于Cambridge Dictionaries
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