Kurt Barnard

Kurt Barnard
companies consumer controls decent demand difficult economic evidence good however inventory nobody orders planning spring time until
They are all planning very cautiously, very carefully. Some companies have very decent inventory controls, but however good those controls are they still have to do some economic forecasting, and forecasting is a little difficult this time around. Nobody is going to spring for big orders until there's evidence that consumer demand is back, and there is no such evidence to date.
cautious consumers demand difficult half industry job picture retail second spending unless until year
Until the unemployment picture improves, consumers will be very cautious about their spending habits. We think the second half of the year could also be difficult for the retail industry unless the job demand improves.
affordable apparel broke chains consumers demand dressed estimates gap mean performing research specialty taylor
The demand for the 'luxury look' is back. Americans want to be fashionable and elegantly dressed but that doesn't mean they want to go broke in the process, ... Consumers know that they can get that well-dressed look for an affordable price, and that's why the specialty apparel chains like Gap ( GPS : Research , Estimates ) and Ann Taylor ( ANN : Research , Estimates ) are performing well.
demand dollars great home occupied sales simply spent thousands time
Demand is great simply because home sales have been going through the roof, and every time a home is occupied for the first time, usually tens of thousands of dollars are spent on furnishing it and refurbishing it,
appeal buy chair customers demand desire evoke exactly gadgets granted image kinds lost massage mind people products reason sharper themselves
Sharper Image products also evoke the desire in customers to buy them. Granted that a $1,800 massage chair may not appeal to someone who just lost their job, but one reason that these kinds of high-end gadgets are in demand is exactly because some people want to pamper themselves and take their mind away from that kind of reality.
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There's tremendous demand for anything related to gardening, horticulture. It means dollar signs at the cash register.
area continue course cutting demand despite hand inventory retailers single themselves virtually
If demand should continue to plummet, a lot of retailers will find themselves with too much inventory on hand despite their course of caution. A lot of retailers are cutting back on inventories, canceling orders, in virtually every single area of retail.
confidence consumers demand exciting fashions lack second strong sweep
The fashions did not appeal. They were not sufficiently exciting to sweep consumers into the stores, ... translates into a lack of confidence that there will be strong consumer demand in the second half.
act clearly demand left magnitude mark particular product store suddenly tells
The magnitude of the demand tells the retailer how to act and what to do. If a product is hot, clearly there's not going to be a markdown. But if demand suddenly slackens and there's still a lot of merchandise left in the store on that particular day, they will mark it down.
act clearly demand left magnitude mark particular product store suddenly tells
The magnitude of the demand tells the retailer how to act and what to do, ... If a product is hot, clearly there's not going to be a markdown. But if demand suddenly slackens and there's still a lot of merchandise left in the store on that particular day, they will mark it down.
gap time
What the Gap is doing is not only what it must be doing, but what it should have done a long time ago.
clear economy evidence frightened happening list numbers point public saw today
What's happening is very simple. The numbers we saw today are clear evidence that the American public is shell-shocked to the point of being frightened over a big long list of circumstances surrounding the economy over which they have no power, no control.
bottom checks effect hurt itself nightmare results retailers tax worst
The worst part of these results is that they show that the effect of the tax rebate checks has petered out. This is a nightmare in itself for retailers and it doesn't bode well for Christmas. Also, we'll probably see more markdowns now, more than retailers anticipated for the holidays. That will hurt their bottom line.
clear consumer decent evidence expect holiday last modest sales slow spending three
The sales clear evidence of modest consumer spending slow down. We expect a decent holiday sales season, but an unspectacular one. The last three have been spectacular, particularly the last one.