Optimism for Black Friday and Holiday Season
With sales momentum at their backs and a compressed calendar ahead, most retailers are anticipating a decent turnout for Black Friday and the holiday season despite the nation’s ongoing angst over inflation.
The revenue gains won’t be large, but retailers feel abetted by pumped-up loyalty programs, increased use of AI to trigger promotions and flash sales, and their sharper values this season, aware they need to offer and do more to get consumers to their stores.
The strong stock market should encourage spending; so should weather conditions for most of the country, and there’s also less uncertainty in the air, with the presidential election decided…
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Generally, the weather will be conducive to hitting the malls. According to Planalytics, from Nov. 29 to Dec. 1, cold temperatures will blanket the Northwest to the East Coast and are expected to drop below normal and last year. That bodes well for winter clothes and accessories. Seasonable to warm temperatures will continue across pockets of the southern tier, while a large winter storm is expected to sweep across the country during the weekend, with rain and snow likely for a large portion of the central and eastern U.S. Some snow could impede traffic over parts of the North Central and the Northeast regions, according to Planalytics, which helps retailers gauge demand based on weather forecasts and analysis…