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Retailers Thankful, But Gains Modest

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The Associated Press

The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 2, 2008

NEW YORK - The nation's stores finally got some relief this Thanksgiving weekend, according to data released late Monday, but the sales gains were modest and analysts worry the pace can't be sustained through the season and beyond as shoppers worry about the recession.

"Consumers were very deliberate about where they went and what they shopped for" over the Thanksgiving weekend, said Bill Martin, co-founder of ShopperTrak RCT Corp., a research firm that tracks traffic and retail sales at more than 50,000 outlets. "They shopped for promotions, and there wasn't a lot of impulse buying."

Total retail sales for Friday and Saturday combined rose 1.9 percent compared with the same holiday time period a year ago, ShopperTrak reported, but a shopping frenzy on Friday wasn't sustained the next day.

Sales rose 3 percent on Friday to $10.6 billion, but slipped 0.8 percent to $6.0 billion on Saturday. Martin expected a further pullback Sunday, estimating that total retail sales for the three-day weekend probably rose a modest 1 percent.

Locally, the general managers at WestShore Plaza in Tampa and The Shops at Wiregrass in Wesley Chapel both said that mall retailers were reporting strong crowds over the weekend. Jay Botsch, manager of WestShore Plaza, said crowds were steady all day on Friday, unlike most Black Fridays, when traffic climbs and falls throughout the day.

At least one local merchant, Fighter Warehouse, said shoppers seemed more aggressive in hunting deals this year.

"Instead of looking at merchandise, they would just walk right up to the counter and say, 'What are your sales?'" said Nicole Harris, a financial officer for the store, which sells mixed martial arts apparel at International Plaza.

Retailers are hoping the traffic has migrated online. While "Cyber Monday" is not the busiest online shopping day of the year - that day usually occurs later in December - retailers who have seen consumers pull back amid the recession stepped up their online deals by offering discounts, free shipping and more.

Tribune reporter Michael Sasso contributed to this report.

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