By Justine Griffin

ST. PETERSBURG — Before there was Amazon and phone apps that promise one-hour delivery, there was the Home Shopping Network.

Similar to its competitor QVC, the company now known as HSN was an innovator in reaching new audiences during live broadcasts on its cable television channel and even online. Over most of the last 11 years, the company flourished under the leadership of Mindy Grossman, a veteran retail executive who polished the St. Petersburg-based company’s image and added to its line of high profile partnerships with celebrities and fashion brands.

But times change. HSN is not immune to the challenges nearly all retailers face these days. They too are struggling to compete with nimble, digital competitors like Amazon and others that continue to surge ahead in sales and innovation. Even Grossman, who announced just last month that she had accepted the job of CEO and president of Weight Watchers International, couldn’t stem the bleeding of the retailer’s tumbling profits over the last year.

“The economy overall is moving toward digital. It’s vicious in a lot of ways. If you can’t keep up with the likes of Amazon, you’re going to be destroyed,” said Budd Margolis, a TV shopping consultant based in London. “I worry that TV shopping is at the beginning of the end. Companies are not being aggressive enough.”

HSN executives see the writing on the wall. In the wake of Grossman’s high profile departure, the company’s remaining executive team continue to build on the digital initiatives that began under her watch.

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