After-Christmas Sales: Will Discounts on Discounts Cause Shopping Hangovers the Weekend After Christmas?
JC Penney is opening its doors at 5:30 a.m. There are over 100 doorbuster specials, discounts up to 80% off, and coupons for discounts off the total purchase. January white sales have begun, New Year's furniture sales are starting and JC Penney's extensive advertising of the event states that all prices are good through December 27th.
While the Penney's effort is appreciated, the consumers I know have a "So what?" response to it all. Does JC Penney really expect shoppers to believe that regular pricing will resume on December 28th? If we all just sleep in the day after Christmas, won't we get even lower prices, better discounts, and bigger coupons in January?
Because they are so common, discounts and sales have lost much of their magnetic power and have become part of the expected ordinary. Even Neiman Marcus is discounting its new arrival merchandise. Penney's 100 doorbuster discounts are almost laughable compared to the the 101 pages of Neiman Marcus discounts. When you can get discounts on Prada Leather Coats, Michael Kors vintage jeans, Faberge vases, and Loro Piana mink collar cashmere robes, what does a discount really mean?
What it means is that retail prices are recessed to match the giant steps backward that other parts of the U.S. economy have taken. Discounting is no longer a temporary promotion, it is a competitive pricing strategy. If shoppers aren't numb to discount mania already, they will be eventually. At some point the retail industry is going to have to adopt the Wal-Mart strategy and call a rollback a rollback.
Until then, shoppers can watch retailers bend over backwards in the game of retail limbo and ask, "How low can they go?" The weekend after Christmas, 2008 Sears will go 70% lower, Target will go 75% lower, Wal-Mart will go 80% lower, and Bloomingdales will match the world's largest retailer with their own 80% discounts.
December 26, 2008 doesn't just mark the end of a retail season, it's the beginning of a retail industry transmutation.
This marks a sea-change in the retail business.
Hi Barbara,
A friend of mine has suggested I contact you regarding a speaking engagment.
I hope to hear from you today…(Mon. Dec. 29th/08)
rick Naylor
President, Accucom Productions
This brings questions about real cost…
I think you’re bang on because the majority of consumers are now thinking, do I really need this.
Every media is warning about doom, hence consumers are very caucious and it will take more than me too sale prices.
I’ve always advocated building customer relationships through direct mail with newsletters and catalogs. You now how to show the customer why a certain item, catagory, or niche in your store will be of benefit to them.
I run a big group of surfstores in Bali, Indonesia. Shoppers are half locals and half overseas tourists. We are experiencing EXACTLY the same thing as this article describes. It’s the world over. I agree that the only way to go is to all revise our costing, worldwide, simultaneously, and accept that we’re going to mark up less/make less profit for the coming ?18mths.
Discounts yes, but where do I get the money to shop from. The job’s precariously hanging and the family is more intent on saving than on spending.
Brian.