PastTense

U.S. Malls and the State of Retail

The U.S. has several times as much retail space per capita as many other western democracies. With the continuing bad economic situation the amount of retail space will decline significantly.

Seven Irrational Retail Valuations

The fundamental question is whether this is a normal-type recession and demand will return in a year or so--or if the economic situation in the US has fundamentally changed for the worse (that consumer spending in recent years was because of increases in debt and the chickens are coming home to roost...)
If the situation has fundamentally changed for the worse I would expect the consumer to trade down (Walmart, Target)--leaving these apparel retailers with significantly lower sales. And of course even a few percent decrease in sales seems to decimate profits for them.

Average Joe Isn't Buying: Retail's Future Looks Bleak

"December retail sales dropped 1.7 percent year-over-year, making for the worst decline ever recorded''

1.7% just doesn't seem that catastrophic to me. If business can't handle declines that small, they need new management.