In 14 large cities, 17,000 shops have closed in the last ten years, accounting for one out of every ten since 2013. Some are being outcompeted by internet sales, while others are being pulled down by mounting costs. In significant centers, sixteen percent of the shuttered businesses vacated their locations, compared to approximately ten thousand businesses lost on a national scale during the same decade. The most severe decreases were seen in Bari (-22%), Rome (-18%), and Turin (-17%). Even within the same territory, the tourist dimension is decisive, and stores intended for foreigners are preserved. The influence of e-commerce on the retail problem is more obvious: towns are suffering as the share of trade shifts from the physical to the digital dimension. It also has an impact on consumer purchasing power, as they seek lower-cost alternatives for certain categories of goods. More than 2,000 furniture businesses, 1,198 hardware stores, 1,400 newsstands, and over a thousand stationery stores have vanished from major cities. Fashion is one of the most affected categories, with almost 5,500 businesses lost in the 14 centers, including over 4,300 apparel stores (representing 25% of closed firms) and nearly 1,150 footwear and leather goods. Fashion is also hampered by a drop in consumption and competition from ecommerce.