Holiday sales outlook looks flat

Economic slowdown worries some South Sound retailers

By Rolf Boone | The Olympian • Published November 19, 2008

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Sales are expected to be stagnant during the November-December holiday shopping season in South Sound and around the nation because of the slowing economy and a historic stock sell-off on Wall Street last month that rattled consumer confidence, according to two national surveys and a local retail expert.

Statewide, including South Sound, holiday sales are expected to be flat compared with last year's, said Jan Teague, president and chief executive of the Olympia-based Washington Retail Association.

Confidence needed

Retailers are offering discounts earlier this year and are catering to consumers looking for value, but that won't be enough to stimulate much sales growth, she said.

She thinks the U.S. Congress should consider another stimulus package for consumers. Earlier this year, federal government stimulus checks for $300, $600 and $1,200 were mailed out to individuals, couples and families.

"They need to take steps that give consumers some confidence, and they need to give Wall Street some confidence so it stops gyrating," she said in reference to the recent seesaw movements in the Dow Jones industrial average and other stock indexes.

"Those two things need to happen to still the worry we have," Teague said.

Curtailing expenses

Shoppers at Westfield Capital mall said they planned to cut back on spending.

University of Puget Sound senior Steven Ojo, who works as a promoter and event planner, said he expects to spend 75 percent less on holiday gifts this year than last year. He said he used credit cards to pay for gasoline when it hit record-high prices over the summer and now wants to pay down debt rather than spend money on gifts.

Lacy Phillips of Olympia, who works as a hair stylist in Lakewood, said she began noticing a drop in business in September.

Fewer customers are paying for higher-priced services, she said, adding that her commission sales have fallen by $300 to $400 a month. She said she plans to cut her holiday spending in half this year.