Black Friday "Hijacked" by Christmas Creep

The holiday retail season is already well under way due to the ever growing phenomenon “Christmas creep.” Traditional Black Friday sales are being “hijacked” by Christmas displays in stores earlier every year—this year, well before Halloween—according to George Cook, executive professor of marketing at the Simon Graduate School of Business. Cook says early holiday sales that would have taken place later in the year combined with continuing economic uncertainty (high jobless rate, rising consumer goods prices, the lowest consumer confidence rate since the 2008-09 recession, decreased spending) will result in a modest 2 to 3 percent uptick in holiday retail sales this year compared to last year’s 5.2 percent gain. “On the positive side, luxury sales are rising,” Cook says. “For example, Nordstrom’s sales are up 10.4 percent and online sales continue to improve. That is a good sign.”