Joel Warady

Snowy Weather Clouds Holiday Outlook

December 22, 2009

FROM RETAILWIRE:
The snowstorm that blanketed much of the eastern U.S. washed out "Super Saturday" for many stores in those regions and apparently caused some retailers to rethink final-days marketing strategies. How do you think last weekend's storms affected holiday selling?      [more...]

Maybe this question will sound naive, but if a retailer's whole year of profitability can be sidelined by one weekend storm, isn't there a bigger story at hand? What does this say about the health of the retailer, or retailing in general?

I think we have taken for granted this whole concept of Black Friday, the fact that retailers are not profitable for the year until the day after Thanksgiving. If all of the profit occurs after the Thanksgiving holiday, and runs right up to the end of the year, why don't retailers keep their doors shut for 46 weeks, and simply open for the final six?

I think retailers need to get back to the basics, and attempt to make a profit on a monthly basis, each and every month. Then, when a bad storm comes, and foot traffic is down, it won't destroy their whole year.

Too simplistic?