Apparel Online Bangladesh Magazine February Issue 2019 | Page 72

WORLD WRAP
A STRONG
HOLIDAY SALES
SEASON IN 2018
LEAVES FASHION
RETAILERS WITH
A REASON TO
CELEBRATE
A political deadlock in Washington and the slowing global growth in 2018 had been leading to a rising sentiment of retail uncertainty
and a volatile market to capture. But strong sales numbers for the recently concluded holiday season in the US have left retailers
celebrating, with boosted shares to report. According to a Mastercard report, sales during the holiday shopping season rose by 5.1
per cent, to over US $ 850 billion in 2018, the strongest in the past six years.
N
ational Retail Federation had
forecast US holiday retail
sales to rise between 4.3 per cent
and 4.8 per cent in November and
December, reaching up to US $ 720.89
billion. This forecast compares with
an average annual increase of 3.9
per cent over the past five years.
Keeping up with what was predicted,
the Mastercard report also states
that online sales jumped 19.1 per
cent compared to that in the last
year. The categories of home and
apparel saw maximum growth,
as clothing also benefited from
a strong Back-to-School season,
which boomed with a 7.9
per cent increase over 2017.
Other factors that hugely contributed
to this growth were early discounts
by numerous retailers, and the falling
of the Christmas Eve on a Monday
this year, which gave the customers
an extra day for shopping. Steve
Sadove, Mastercard Senior Advisor,
also believes that, “Gas prices are
low. People are benefiting from lower
tax rates. You have an environment
where people are, bottom line, feeling
good about their own personal
financial situation and that’s been
reflected. Also, by combining the
right inventory with the right mix
of online versus in-store, many
retailers were able to give consumers
what they wanted via the right
shopping channels. ”
Adding onto the reasons behind a
rising consumer confidence, Bob
Phibbs, CEO of New York-based
consultancy, The Retail Doctor, said,
“The reality is that the consumer
felt comfortable enough to splurge
and we’re hearing more and more
that it’s for items for themselves.”
Although he also mentioned concerns
such as tariffs and the partial current
Government shutdown that can be
damper on 2019’s retail outlook.
Department stores, though, finished
the season with a 1.3 per cent decline
from 2017, in part because of various
store closings. Still, online sales
growth for department stores climbed
72 Apparel Online Bangladesh | FEBRUARY 2019 | www.apparelresources.com
UK Holiday sales expected to
increase around 5 per cent
Though final results about how holidays
sales went in the UK are still not compiled,
eMarketer Retail had predicted that total
holiday sales in the UK will jump by 4.7
per cent to reach £ 98.06 billion (US $
126.26 billion). The expectation of strong
spending is fueled by low unemployment,
low inflation and strong wage growth in
the UK, despite ominous daily headlines
warning of Brexit and economic uncertainty.
Another milestone that was expected for
Holiday sales 2018 was in the percentage
of shopping that will be done online.
The prediction indicated that UK holiday
e-commerce will jump nearly 16 per cent this
year to £ 21.22 billion (US $ 27.33 billion),
which represents 21.6 per cent of total
holiday sales, the highest percentage ever.