Shoppers Crowd Malls Over Weekend
With 11 days until Christmas, shoppers crowded U.S. malls and stores over the weekend, their spirits buoyed by news of Saddam Hussein’s capture. But it was unclear whether stores met their sales goals.
Business dropped Sunday for many stores, hampered in the Northeast by the second major snowstorm in slightly more than a week. Still, several experts said the news of Hussein’s capture, revealed early Sunday, couldn’t be a better holiday gift for merchants during the season’s last, crucial stretch.
“Ultimately, in the long run, this is going to put people in better spirits, and we are definitely excited that this has come during the holiday season,” Ellen Tolley, a spokeswoman at the Washington-based National Retail Federation, said Sunday. “This is a piece of news that we were not expecting.”
C. Britt Beemer, chairman of America’s Research Group, in Charleston, S.C., believes that Hussein’s capture will result in improved consumer confidence that will translate “into bigger sales.”
However, that remains to be seen.
Like other shoppers braving swirling snow while shopping Sunday at New York’s Rockefeller Center, Colleen Briggs said, “I’m glad they got him, but it’s not going to make me spend more.” The Tampa, Fla., resident, said she would spend about $2,000 -- the same amount as last year.
After the heavy snow Dec. 5-6 -- which chilled business at many bricks-and-mortar stores but fueled online buying -- executives were counting even more on a weekend spending surge to reverse lackluster sales. Last year, the second Saturday before Christmas was the third busiest day of the season.
Despite an economy on the rebound, consumers continue to be frugal and seem to be waiting even later than last year to do their holiday shopping. Although recent economic data have been cheery, analysts said consumers were still leery of a sluggish job market that remained a big factor for holiday spending.
“I held onto my job when everyone else was losing theirs, and I feel like it’s all coming back,” said Jayne Huddleston, who was at the Dallas Galleria on Saturday, buying toys and sweaters for her young children. “I feel like our jobs are a bit more stable. And if you can have your job, that’s good.”
Still, she plans to spend about $500 this holiday season, about the same as last year.
Martha Vadney of Albany, N.Y., who was shopping at Bloomingdale’s in Manhattan on Saturday, said she didn’t feel any more confident about the job market than she did a year ago. Although she believes that her husband’s job is secure, the couple still have not recouped their stock market losses.
Karen MacDonald, a spokeswoman at Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based Taubman Centers Inc., a real estate investment trust that owns or manages 31 shopping centers in 13 states, said sales rose at stores Saturday compared with a year ago but snow slowed business Sunday.
Beemer said a spot-check of 11 malls nationwide Saturday indicated that traffic and sales were healthy.
Major retailers, including Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Target Corp. today are expected to report their weekly results, including from last weekend.
Online sales have remained a bright spot this holiday season. The sales, which exclude travel and auctions, were up 31% to $2.16 billion for the week ended Friday, according to ComScore Networks Inc.
Matthew Muterspaugh, who was shopping at the CambridgeSide Galleria in Boston, said he bought more of his gifts online this holiday season than in the past, partly because he found better deals. He was picking up a few items Saturday, including ski socks and a ballerina tree ornament.
Lois Denney, who was shopping at the Oakwood Center in New Orleans on Friday, also spent more online this year.
“We shopped online for the first time last year, and it worked out great,” Denney said. “The best part is there’s no wrapping.”
