Retail stores not waiting until Black Friday to offer deals More stores offer early sales and online deals to lure holidays shoppers Ely Portillo / Charlotte Observer If you think you’ve been seeing more sales and holiday merchandise out earlier, it’s not your imagination. Holiday creep has continued, with retailers offering early sales, free online […]

Poor Retail Sales Could Mean Bigger Deals Quentin Fottrell / SmartMoney Department stores will have to drop prices to get consumers through the doors this holiday season, experts say — earlier opening hours just won’t cut it. While October sales were buoyant, helped by winter sales, retails figures for November and December are expected to […]

At 30, Black Friday loses its retail punch Early promotions, online deals chip away at day’s place in shopping lore Jaclyn Trop / The Detroit News The post-Thanksgiving Black Friday shopping tradition turns 30 this year and looks as though it’s a little over the hill in Michigan and across the country. Analysts and consumers […]

Halloween is over and Christmas has come to stay Colin Smith / KTAR As October comes to a close, get ready to see some Christmas decorations. The holiday advertizing blitz has already started at stores like Walmart, who have already had them on display since mid-September. “They want to not have too much inventory after […]

A Bleak Forecast For Black Friday Quentin Fottrell / SmartMoney There may be bit more elbow room on Black Friday.  Only 18% of consumers plan to go shopping on retail’s favorite day of the year, according to a phone survey of 1,000 adults carried out by the deal tracker website Offers.com.  That would mark a […]

Just Relax, Then Buy More and Pay More For It Kelli B. Grant / The Wall Street Journal Close your eyes, relax, breathe deep—and swipe your credit card. Retailers have long known that less-stressed shoppers are likely to browse longer, but now there’s evidence that they’ll also be more receptive to higher prices. A recent […]