Boom, brand loyalty is gone, nobody would go to their "favourite" store any more because there would be no favourites.
You are assuming a store like walmart doesn't differentiate itself from other stores by having an easier return policy, or that target doesn't differentiate itself with a nicer store.
If you could get 1 store to adopt this system, others may follow since they would be losing out to store 1. Would it take a while? Yes, Would it be really, really tough, yes. Has it happened before in other industries? Absolutely:
Airlines,
Hotels,
Its happening with cars, carwoo.
etc. etc. etc.
So, while you may think it is a terrible idea, and it very well may be a terrible idea, it could also be a very achievable idea.
To me, it is more like the steam engine concept. It may not happen exactly as the OP describes it, but my guess is it will happen in time no matter what.
[added] for those that say no store will ever agree, that is a really bold assumption. You may be right, but if you just worked on getting 1 store in 1 industry online, then got a competitor, then got another one it could work.
I might need to clarify my point, I don't mean companies like Target or Walmart that have huge numbers of outlets, these companies already compete on $0.01 differences, these companies (in England at least) already do the sort of thing the post describes.
I'm talking about the "normal" stores, the ones that might have 1 or 2 locations in one city, or have 2 or 3 locations across the country, the stores that rely on brand loyalty and don't compete with their competitors on $0.01 difference.
No small business would ever choose to compete on $0.01 price differences; the idea the OP is proposing would cause exactly this.
If you are giving them the inventory management software for free, that is a huge hook for cash strapped small businesses. And once your 'trojan horse' is installed, it's a lot easier to convince a small business owner to 'activate' the product sharing feature to gain an edge over other nearby businesses.
And then as you said, once one business does it, the others follow so that they don't become disadvantaged.
It would seem to me that the key to success is ensuring that your inventory management software is highly intuitive and easy to use for the time-poor business owners.
You are assuming a store like walmart doesn't differentiate itself from other stores by having an easier return policy, or that target doesn't differentiate itself with a nicer store.
If you could get 1 store to adopt this system, others may follow since they would be losing out to store 1. Would it take a while? Yes, Would it be really, really tough, yes. Has it happened before in other industries? Absolutely: Airlines, Hotels, Its happening with cars, carwoo. etc. etc. etc.
So, while you may think it is a terrible idea, and it very well may be a terrible idea, it could also be a very achievable idea.
To me, it is more like the steam engine concept. It may not happen exactly as the OP describes it, but my guess is it will happen in time no matter what.
[added] for those that say no store will ever agree, that is a really bold assumption. You may be right, but if you just worked on getting 1 store in 1 industry online, then got a competitor, then got another one it could work.