The question of how to balance virtual stores with bricks and mortar ones is a thorny one, with various theories fighting for dominance. Some say it’s all going virtual and point to the search for value (see the FT today and the report on shoppers deserting the high street for home pages), while others say products need to be touched to be appreciated, and point to the recent Zappos debacle as something that will also drive people back into stores. The only thing that’s clear is the lack of consensus on the best strategy going forward, something that was brought home to me pretty tangibly thanks to two recent bits of information I stumbled upon.

First, at the Financo seminar I wrote about yesterday, the question and answer session produced an interesting addendum courtesy of audience member Mickey Drexler, chief executive of J Crew. Mr Drexler asked the panellists, all of whom were bullish on their consumer future, what crystal ball they were using, since as far as he could tell, the Christmas just gone was the most discounted in memory, and foot traffic was way down at his mall stores.