SHOPPING FRENZY IN FULL SWING RETAILERS WORRIED ABOUT LESS TIME TO SCRAMBLE FOR GIFTS.Byline: Brent Hopkins Staff Writer A shortened holiday season has forced retailers to deck their halls already as they labor to get consumers shopping early in a challenging year. Calendar quirks have lopped nearly a week off the traditional shopping season between Thanksgiving and Christmas. With less time to trump up to devise; to collect with unfairness; to fabricate; as, to trump up a charge. See also: Trump traditional discounts and Hanukkah starting the day after Thanksgiving, holiday decor and promotions are in full display. Retail experts say, forget the sentimentality about waiting for the day after Thanksgiving, usually one of the busiest shopping days of the year, because the holiday season's already in full effect. ``We did triple business the Saturday after Halloween,'' said Bruce Mayer, a mechanic who sells high-end remote controlled cars for Marty's Hobbies in Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. . ``That told me things were really ready to go. Financially, it's already begun.'' Though the gas-powered cars cost up to $399, sales have been strong as shoppers try to get their purchases out of the way. Much the same goes for the San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden Music Box Co.'s spot at The Oaks in Thousand Oaks, which got its first Christmas merchandise in August and has been selling strongly ever since, with Hanukkah items moving just as well. ``With Hanukkah the day after Thanksgiving, people are already buying,'' said sales associate Yuliya Reznikova. ``It's tough for moms who like to decorate early, because they don't have as much time, so we started early.'' While small stores Noun 1. small stores - personal items conforming to regulations that are sold aboard ship or at a naval base and charged to the person's pay commissary - a retail store that sells equipment and provisions (usually to military personnel) may be able to shift seasons more easily, the nation's largest retailer has experienced a bit of trouble. Wal-Mart told investors in its weekly sales forecast Sales forecast A key input to a firm's financial planning process. External sales forecasts are based on historical experience, statistical analysis, and consideration of various macroeconomic factors. that sales growth would be on the low end of its 2 percent to 4 percent growth for November. Wall Street did not react kindly, sending the Bentonville, Ark.-based giant's stock down $1.81 on Monday and another 76 cents on Tuesday to close at $52.92. ``The movement of Thanksgiving clouds things,'' said spokesman Tom Williams Tom Williams can refer to:
And with people buying closer to Christmas, Wal-Mart's November sales will be curtailed. Its competitor Target, one of the few sales stalwarts through challenging economic times, also said its sales would fall due to the shorter season. Federated Connected and treated as one. See federated database and federated directories. Department Stores This is a list of department stores. In the case of department store groups the location of the flagship store is given. This list does not include large specialist stores, which sometimes resemble department stores. , operator of Macy's, Bloomingdale's and others, projects sales for November and December to be down 2.5 percent from last year. The chain planned its holiday promotions far in advance and rolled out its seasonal boutiques by late September. ``We went into this season really aware,'' said Rina Neiman, a spokeswoman for Macy's West. ``Nothing's a surprise, so the company really planned its promotions and inventory. Hopefully we'll have everything customers want.'' Crystal Mijailovic, an Agoura resident who studies at Moorpark College, is one of those late shoppers that the chains hold dear. Though she's already casing malls for clothes to give, she figures she won't get her buying done for a few more weeks. ``For sure, I'm a procrastinator pro·cras·ti·nate v. pro·cras·ti·nat·ed, pro·cras·ti·nat·ing, pro·cras·ti·nates v.intr. To put off doing something, especially out of habitual carelessness or laziness. v.tr. . It's probably smart to start early, but ...,'' she laughed before trailing off. Most in the retail world are taking a pragmatic position. With decorations up at many local malls, shoppers don't need Johnny Mathis to tell them it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. ``You just have to make the best of To improve to the utmost; to use or dispose of to the greatest advantage. To reduce to the least possible inconvenience; as, to make the best of ill fortune or a bad bargain. - Bacon. See also: Best Best the days you do have,'' said Cris Bremner, marketing manager for The Oaks, whose Santa Claus arrives on Saturday. ``It's not like this has never happened before. Here at The Oaks, sales and traffic are strong and we're anticipating, given the economy, a good Christmas. The customers may be time-deprived, but they're just going to have a few fewer days to get it done.'' CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color) Donna Snyder of Los Angeles checks out the ornaments on Christmas trees in Macy's Holiday Lane shop in the Sherman Oaks Galleria Sherman Oaks Galleria is a shopping mall and business center located in the Sherman Oaks neighborhood of Los Angeles, California at the corner of Ventura and Sepulveda Boulevards in the San Fernando Valley. Locals colloquially refer to the mall simply as "the Galleria. . Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer |
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