A recent plea from a local looking for sundresses and long skirts in the city sparked what turned out to be a surprisingly relatable conversation. And it got us thinking — for a world-class city, San Francisco's retail landscape has gotten pretty barren.

Let's state the obvious. The city has lost an enormous amount of retail over the past few years. Union Square, once the undisputed shopping hub of Northern California, now features a growing collection of boarded-up storefronts and "For Lease" signs that outnumber mannequins. Westfield Mall is literally closed. The economic conditions that drove retailers out — sky-high commercial rents, pandemic disruptions, and yes, rampant shoplifting that the city was painfully slow to address — have left a gap that hasn't been filled.

What remains is a fragmented patchwork. You've got Valencia Street and Hayes Valley for the boutique crowd, but be prepared to drop $180 on a single linen top. There's the Haight for vintage, if thrifting is your thing. And of course, there's always the internet — which is increasingly where San Franciscans end up, shipping boxes to their apartments because the physical retail just isn't there anymore.

This matters beyond personal wardrobes. Retail generates sales tax revenue, creates jobs, and brings foot traffic that supports surrounding businesses. Every shuttered storefront is a small hit to the city's fiscal health and neighborhood vitality. When people can't find sundresses in a major American city, something has gone structurally wrong.

The fix isn't complicated in theory: make it easier and cheaper to operate a business here, enforce property crime laws so retailers aren't hemorrhaging inventory, and stop treating commercial landlords and small business owners like ATMs for every new city program. San Francisco used to be a place where you could wander into a neighborhood and stumble on exactly what you were looking for. Getting back there requires the city to remember that commerce isn't a nuisance — it's the lifeblood of a functioning urban economy.

In the meantime, good luck finding that sundress.