- Predictions 2010: Technology
- Predictions 2010: Consumers
- Predictions 2010: The Big Picture
- Predictions 2010: Autos—Two Out of Three Ain't Bad for The Big Three
- Predictions 2010: Real Estate
- Predictions 2010: Analyst Tony Fratto
- Predictions 2010: Analyst Vince Farrell
- Predictions 2010: Economy & Markets
- Predictions 2010: Analyst Tony Crescenzi
- AIG Slashes US Debt Under Deal With New York Fed
- US Manufacturing Grows Less Than Expected
- Pending Home Sales Have Record Rise; Construction Flat
- Commercial Property Fears Are Overblown: Zell, LeFrak
- Trump: Time to Force Banks to Start Lending
- Accused Fraudster Rothstein Arrested
- What to Expect From Obama's Afghanistan Speech

- Retailers 'Friend' Facebook as Marketing Budgets Shrink
- Good Sign for the Economy: 'Greed' Makes a Comeback
MOST SHARED
- Commercial Property Fears Are Overblown: Zell, LeFrak
- Good Sign for the Economy: 'Greed' Makes a Comeback
- Dubai Stocks Could Fall a Further 30%: Charts
- Dubai Markets Close Sharply Lower for Second Day
- Somali Sea Gangs Create Pirate Stock Exchange
- More Late on Auto Loan Payments in Third Quarter
- US Manufacturing Grew Less Than Expected in November
- Pending Home Sales Have Record Rise; Construction Flat
- AIG Slashes US Debt Under Deal With New York Fed
- Farrell: Forget About Dubai—Worry About This
This blog will look at the winners and losers in the retail space. Who has the right strategy to capture consumer dollars? It also will look for trends in consumer spending and how that will impact the economy.
![]() |
CNBC.com |
Keep in mind that the weak gain happened after Wal-Mart rolled out markdowns on more than 15,000 items. That said, the discount space was one of the few areas that saw sales gains. Shoppers stuck to buying basics at Walgreens [WAG
Loading...
()
] (6.9%)and Target [TGT
Loading...
()
] (+4%) and spent a lot less on discretionary items like coats, sweaters and clothing.
The apparel sector was hit hard. The only department store to post positive same store sales was Saks [SKS
Loading...
()
] +10.6% and teen retailers Zumiez [ZUMZ
Loading...
()
] was able to buck the downward trend thanks to being on top of the fashion cycle. More than 64% of the nation's biggest retailers missed sales estimates for last month.
Wall Street had fair warning that retailers were going to post weak sales results for the month of October and that's why you're seeing short-covering of retail stocks today.
What I'm watching is to see just how effective promotions/markdowns are in bringing shoppers into stores. The gimmicks run for freebies to competitors to speedy shopping incentives. While pricey promotions, these may work better than outright markdowns which hurt margins and may not build traffic as effectively. We'll see if it works.
Best Buy [BBY
Loading...
()
] will have a Reward zone discount shopping event for frequent customers this weekend. Competitor Circuit City [CC
Loading...
()
] is giving away 30 free Mazda cars and electronics to customers who come in store to play their "drive to 65" instant win game. J. Crew [JCG
Loading...
()
] is creating "gift card kiosk" express lanes for customers who want to shop quickly and not wait on line with customers making product purchases.
Interestingly, Victoria's Secret CEO Sharen Turney told me yesterday that the store does not plan on marking down heavily like they did last year. (VS's same store sales were down 7% in October which dragged down parent company Limited's [LTD
Loading...
()
] overall comp to down 6%.)
Can their marketing and new product get shoppers excited enough to spend on lingerie when they aren't on other clothing items? We'll have to see. Her interview will air later this month on CNBC before the December 4th runway show.
Questions? Comments?
- Goldman Sachs has forbidden employees from gathering in private holiday parties of 12 or more.
- Since its launch in 1998, Google has become a primary force on the Internet. How much do you know about the company?
- What do the gifts from the 12 Days of Christmas cost this year, and how do they compare to 2008?
- A conservative author aims to remind readers why capitalism works for the common good.
- A recent issue of ESPN Magazine was one of its top sellers ever, and it only took scantily clad athletes to make it happen.
- The continued real estate boom in China is partially fueled by a generational flood of newlyweds.













