Store groups are being caught in a crushing pincer movement not of their making. On one side, a brutal cost environment makes the expense of simply doing business harder than ever to bear. On the other, their customer base is being penalised by increased living costs and an erosion of spending power resulting from three interest rate hikes over the space of a few months.
Retailers have been coping admirably with difficult conditions. Christmas may not have been the worst in 25 years as some feared, but it was a bloody time on the high street. That so many came through successfully to post record figures is a testament to the verve and professionalism of the industry - and its alertness to shoppers' needs.
So, to have weathered the seasonal storms only to see the frighteners put on consumers by a 5.25 per cent interest rate is galling.
Already this year, two prominent retailers - Music Zone and Greeting Card Group - have gone under. Others, such as childrenswear specialist Adams, are on the ropes. The Bank of England's latest interest rate rise will only make things tougher.
But if there's any industry stuffed full of versatile, talented and robust people, it's retail, so few will adopt a counsel of despair, no matter how much they feel the cards are being stacked against them.
Most are likely to up their ante. In this week's issue, Verdict chairman Richard Hyman makes the point that when times are difficult, the most important thing retailers should do is improve their selling and demonstrate the value of their products.
Value - and that doesn't just mean price - is the key judgement a shopper makes before splashing out, whether it is on the weekly food shop or a luxury handbag. That will remain true, no matter how tight trading conditions become.
As the UK high street becomes an increasingly uncomfortable place to be, no wonder so many retailers are looking abroad for the trading equivalent of a place in the sun.
Argos is soon likely to become the latest to put international growth on the agenda. As we reveal today, the retailer is close to forging a partnership in India with local player K Raheja Corp.
Raheja is well established in the burgeoning Indian retail scene - its operations include department stores, hypermarkets and partnerships with other British retailers, such as Mothercare - so it should make a good partner.
The right partner can make all the difference between success and failure, especially in the developing world. It will be fascinating to watch Argos's progress - and that of others such as Tesco and Wal-Mart - in what is becoming one of the world's key retail battlegrounds.
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