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Eleventh Hour Arrives For Independent Retailers

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Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Published: December 23, 2008

SARASOTA - With just a few days until Christmas, local retailers are polishing their wares - and tactics - to land eleventh hour buyers.

Many are resorting to deep discounting as even the strongest independent retailers admit this holiday season has been one of the most challenging in memory.

"We've had to get creative," said Wendy Gretchell, the owner of Lotus, a trendy fashion store in downtown Sarasota.

Gretchell is carrying less formalwear and more casual clothing than in previous years, and when her final rack of men's clothing has been sold at a 75 percent discount, she is planning to concentrate exclusively on women's wear.

"We've tuned in to the economy," Gretchell said. "We think people will be spending more time entertaining at home rather than going out."

As with the major national retailers, the 2008 shopping season is turning out to be a downer for the small stores.

"It's been a tough season, but it's not over yet," said Tina Little, owner of Queens' Wreath Jewels on St. Armands Key. "It's picked up today."

Surveys show that consumers are spending less this season, and if sales in Southwest Florida are anything like what they were in September, the most recent month when local data is available, the region's retailers are in for big trouble.

Sales in the Punta Gorda area amounted to $130.3 million in September, down 15.1 percent from the same month a year earlier, according to the state's Department of Economic Research. In the Sarasota-Bradenton area, sales fell that month by 10.9 percent to $688.2 million, while statewide sales fell 8.2 percent to $23 billion.

Many retailers are reacting to the anemic sales by slashing prices to post-holiday levels.

"EVERYTHING ON SALE!" screamed the orange, capital-lettered sign taped to the window of Optional Art, a St. Armands store. "All jewelry on sale, up to 60 percent off."

Analysts say the result of the collective slowdown in spending will be a flood of closures and bankruptcies as soon as the season is over. But retailers contacted by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune said they have no intention of shutting down.

"If I need to, I will sell my house to support this place," said Alex Sanchez, a Cuban-born artist and engineer who opened a dirt bike, scooter and all-terrain vehicle shop in September on 14th Street in Bradenton.

Sanchez was laid off from Wellcraft Marine's Sarasota boat-building plant in March and is determined to make a success of his new retail venture.

So far, Sanchez has sold enough to pay the rent through February.

"We sell scooters for about $200 less than other dealers in the area," Sanchez said. "That has brought people in. As I'm the mechanic and do the sales, there is no salary to pay but mine."

Justin Moore, a salesman at the Toy Lab in downtown Sarasota, said business may have dropped a bit over the past few months, but sales are still on pace with last year.

"Since I got here in 2006, business has been great," Moore said. "This year it has kind of leveled off, but that's still amazing."

Five customers buzzed the toy-crammed aisles as Moore took a moment to talk. A woman in a black dress at the cash register put down a wooden train set for a toddler and another with a cement mixer, front-end loader and dump truck inside.

"There just aren't any good toy stores in town except this one," the woman said. "And I don't think anyone in this community skimps when it comes to children and grandchildren."

The woman was Nancy Rand, who owns and operates Dream Weavers, a store on St. Armands Key that sells art you can wear.

"Our business has been OK," Rand said. "It hasn't been the best season."

That sentiment was echoed by several St. Armands merchants, who say they plan to stick to offering quality and service instead of steep holiday sales.

"We provide unique things that are not mass-merchandised," said Harold Freeman, manager of the tony Maus & Hoffman clothing store on St. Armands. "Our products simply cannot be duplicated."

And while Freeman admits the local store "isn't setting any records this year," the Fort Lauderdale-based haberdasher is not prepared to put everything on sale just to move it.

As such, only a few items - catalog, mostly - will go on sale after Christmas.

Queens' Wreath has the same philosophy.

"If you want the most beautiful jewels at a fair price, you come to Queens' Wreath," Little said. "If all you want is a price discount, you go somewhere else."

There is no question people are spending less this year, said Daniel Volz, who owns Main Street Traders, a gift and home furnishings store across from Toy Lab. But he said sales have held up fairly well.

"There are certain things people don't want to give up - things that make them feel good," Volz said.

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