Tulsa is losing another major retailer.

The bad news is that J.C.Penney is closing its store in the Tulsa Promenade mall this spring. The good news is that the J.C. Penney store in Woodland Hills Mall will stay open.

For now.

Tulsa, like the rest of the country, is seeing the major decline of retailers like Sears, J.C.Penney, Toys R’ Us, Radio Shack, Lifeway, etc.

The problem is a shift in buying habits by the American people. It is simply easier to purchase items online and have them shipped to your home in a day or two.

Shopping malls are being replaced by giant distribution centers run by mega-retailers.

The Tulsa Promenade used to be Southland Shopping Mall and it was filled with vibrant retailers. Now, Hallmark and others tenants are leaving one by one.

It wasn’t too long ago that Eastland Mall on 21st Street and 129th East Avenue was still a shopping mall. It had a J.C. Penney and a Dillards.

Tulsa’s city government depends on sales tax. That tax is more difficult to track with online purchases. And when stores close because of online purchasing, local people lose their jobs.

Thankfully, J.C.Penney will keep their store in Owasso and at Arrowhead Mall in Muskogee. But if the pattern continues – and there are signs it will – virtually any retailer could be in trouble.

J.C.Penny is closing store in Montana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio and New York.

Successful businesses adapt to changing markets. For American retailers, adapting is becoming more and more of a challenge.