In my line of work we continuously watch retailers movement and activity, especially at the corner that I traffic the most.  In my case a national grocery store anchors a strip center that has the typical mix of retailers like Mexican Food, Nail Salon and an Insurance Company.  But in the past 5 years that it has been full there is a constant moving in and out of some of the spaces and failing of many of the businesses.  The success rate of these stores is actually 50% in this center and that seems low for the price and what the traffic counts promise.  In contrast, across the street is a strip center that is nearly half the cost and the success rate is 90% over time.  So what it brings me to is that buying into a location based on the typical traffic drivers will not necessary create success.  As a matter of fact it can make your rate of success much lower due to the raising of your monthly expenses.  No matter how successful you are, you can not afford to pay too much for your basic monthly costs.  Its a recipe for failure and at the end of the day when you are doing poorly that big anchor store is not going to pay your bills.  Don’t fall for the traffic count and big anchor store sales drivers.  Do your homework and pick the location that makes sense for you and your business.  Any well marketed company that is the best at what they do, can do just as well across the street or down the road and save a ton of money.  This theory goes for any business that works on a high volume model and with a little homework will work for you.  Now you Go!