MarketWatch: Not much for retailers to hope for this holiday season

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MARKETWATCH FIRST TAKE
Black Friday hype wasn't enough
Commentary: Not much for retailers to hope for this holiday season

By MarketWatch


NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- When it comes to shopping, it looks like all bets are off this holiday season.

Black Friday, the traditional kickoff to the holiday shopping season, seemed to have minimal positive impact on overall sales for November, despite sweeping price cuts and outsize promotions that drove shoppers into stores.

In some ways, Black Friday -- which is the day after the Thanksgiving holiday and given its nickname because it was the day that retailers went from running their businesses at a loss (in the red) to turning a profit (in the black) -- lost some of its relevancy this year. Retailers, in a panic to clear out inventory and get people shopping slashed prices well before Nov. 28.

And the post-holiday sales, while better than most people expected, came at the expense of profits because the discounts were so deep. Looks like the annual game of retailers holding out discounting until the last minute to encourage full-priced buying and shoppers postponing spending until the prices come down is canceled this year. ......(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/Not-much-retailers-hope-holiday/story.aspx?guid=%7B0D91599D%2DFA5E%2D4E30%2D9A5E%2DF77CFA707785%7D