15 Responses to “Will Black Friday Be Enough for the Retailers?”

1. Comment by 6ftrabbit

   November 28th, 2008 at 5:12 pm

   Black Friday fun? When people get trampled and killed by mobs of morons? I don’t think so.

2. Comment by Barney

   November 29th, 2008 at 1:27 am

   Alexis, we watched the Macy`s parade also as our granddaughter was in one of the groups that performed, and thought it was delightful. Hopefully, Macy`s will have a profitable season this year, and things do seem to be improving. I do have one question, and it is this___Why do the ecomomists tell us that the savings rate is dangerously low and should be much higher, as in previous years, and at the same time call for people to go out and spend more? How is that possible to accomplish simultaneously, especially when money is not available for either one to a great degree? I have been puzzled by this for some time, and is it not too much spending and borrowing that got us into this difficulty in the first place? Great show!

3. Comment by Alexander

   November 29th, 2008 at 1:53 pm

   Nevermind retailers…how about my job!

   You can read about how the next 3 weeks are critical to me keeping my job…Black Friday, Cyber Monday…and all!

   Help Keep My Job!

4. Comment by AvgConsumer

   November 29th, 2008 at 4:21 pm

   With gas prices below $2 ?

   This christmas I’m giving Gas cards.

   I think we should support Dubai Disney and just give Gas cards this year.

   Hey, if the world’s largest corporation, and the second largest corporation were not oil corporations ? I’d think I’d have rocks in my head.

   Largest corporation ? and yet ? not largest employer ? in fact - I wonder if the stock holders of Exxon get free pulmonary health checkups to see just what breathing car exhaust does to us.

   Jeesh- what’d people celebrate 2100 years ago this time ?

   Most people don’t think past the few books they’ve read.

   I think if Jesus came back ? he’d say - “What’s Christmas again ”

   I vote we contract thanksgiving and christmas together to form Christgiving.

   Call it Dec. 12th.

   All I know is Gas is the gift to give this year…

5. Comment by AvgConsumer

   November 29th, 2008 at 4:23 pm

   That the western consumerism model rides on ‘christmas’ - or a religious exploit to survive ?

   I say that stores seeking 75% of sales for the year from Black Friday on ?

   brings new meaning to “Lord help us”

   eh ?

   All I know is - Occult in latin root means - ‘to Conceal’

   I’d therefore call all those who are concealing their books - occultists.

   In fact, this entire Bush admin - is ‘occultist’

   hide hide hide - and hide some more - like Andi McDowell in Groundhog day talking about the festivities the night before GH day.

6. Comment by AndIfNot?

   November 30th, 2008 at 8:12 am

   If not ?

   then what ?

   mass layoffs ?

7. Comment by GARY FONG

   November 30th, 2008 at 6:49 pm

   Hi Alexis -

   I was surprised by the brisk holiday sales figures for black Friday. So I asked some of my friends what was going on with their holiday spending, and many of them said they were topping off their credit cards because they didn’t care anymore.

   A few of them even said that they felt that this might be the last holiday season they’d be able to get their hands on merchandise, so they’re just going into major denial mode.

   Kind of a “live for today” situation. Not sure if this is the case everywhere, but it could be one explanation?

   Gary Fong

8. Comment by Jack Frayer

   November 30th, 2008 at 10:06 pm

   I believe that internet retail will be the way of the future. This will allow better inventory management and cost overhead control, the substance of both CEO’s comments. The stores will essentially be show rooms for their products.

   As cost drives the consumer, adoption to this model will accelerate. This will allow for more cost deflation, which is not what we really want for a growing economy. I associate this business model with a “Red Ocean” scenario, only the strongest will survive.

9. Comment by movers

   December 1st, 2008 at 1:41 pm

   I agree with Jack about the online model and I think we have seen that the well positioned Brick and Morter i.e. Walmart types will be best at exploiting the conversion of traditional retailing to web retailing with a local store front.

10. Comment by brian

    December 1st, 2008 at 9:57 pm

    Mrs. Glick,

    i am an ultra small business owner from the midwest, and have been helping young professionals, one on one, with their asset management issues for some time, as i said last year… oil prices will rise sharply but will stabilize when the spec buyer is gone and regular supply and demand is restored…current prices will be $47-$52 for a time and will finally stabilize at $75-$90 in less than 12mo, which is a fair market value..(sorry..$3.00gal for gas is reasonable considering what milk cost)….i advised 2 years ago to invest in modest housing at a reasonable price and that the rise in some properties is overvalued and unsustainably high, and that a correction with be forthcoming. (anyone with common sense could see these things coming)…i myself have bought many undervalued stocks, some even going into chapter 11…….we will see better than expected numbers for retail this season and into next year…..NEVER underestimate the american people…..all we hear is 5%….7% off in sales, that is nothing, it is a short dip in a long cycle curve…… all we hear now from the media is based on a false negative perception brought on by fools from govt saying “the sky is falling” and, since “confidence” is molded by perception why is it a BIG surprise the market is so up and down…..look…it takes 3 times the positive to overcome the negative……so lets hear more of the positive, like from the midwest where housing starts continue and their prices are stable, new businesses are starting, people are shopping, spending and supporting each other, almost all are working, paying their house pay., car pay., credit debt, watching their kids play sports, putting food on the table, and even trimming the tree, putting up xmas decorations, knowing all is not lost no matter what the experts and media say, and that UNITED STATES OF AMERICA is where life is good……we that pay our bills on time are all very tired of hearing how bad it is for the 10% of the ones that overextended themselves……we all will have a GREAT CHRISTMAS this year no matter what washington says……..not in “things”, but in spirit!!!!!!!!! we will prevail !!!!!!

11. Comment by Shelby

    December 1st, 2008 at 11:20 pm

    While online retail may look like the way of the future, I find it very interesting that shares of eBay, Amazon.com, Overstock.com, and other e-retailers actually FELL on Cyber Monday. Traffic may have been up, but I think the true test will be when the sales figures are released later on in the week.

    With that being said, I could get used to all of this free shipping

12. Comment by Aaron

    December 3rd, 2008 at 6:39 am

    Mrs Glick
    I would like the government officials that the big three are going to sit down in front of today explain why they did not treat Citi or AIG the same way. The Senate and the house ( Government it self) has never had a handle on spending money the way they should. Why hasnt this issue been brought to there attention. I hope the auto industry will survive, growing up in the infamous Flint,MI were General Motors pulled out and the city crumbled and still has not really come back yet we are all hopeful.

    P.S your morning on air team is great.

13. Comment by Kendrik Cone

    December 3rd, 2008 at 7:14 am

    Mrs. Glick,

    I heard you mention this morning that you are trying to refinance, but could not get a callback. My community bank has been in business with the same name for 102 years, and we have funds available to lend in all 50 states for mortgages of all types. If I can help you in any way, please let me know, I promise a rapid callback.

    Thanks,
    Kendrik Cone
    Mortgage Loan Officer
    Roscoe State Bank
    512-423-9761

14. Comment by Axel

    December 3rd, 2008 at 7:38 am

    Hi Alexis

    You just said on air that your mortgage person is not calling you back. I would love to help. I work for a FDIC bank so I can lend in all 50 states. Visit my web site to view rates and for my contact info. I hope to talk to you soon.

    Axel

15. Comment by chuck

    December 3rd, 2008 at 9:19 am

    alexis I just hopped off my cinema treasures site.
    I read up a follow up story on the site on the cinema company Village Entertainment which ran the old Pemberton 4 cinema to the ground. According the news link on the site Village folded on September 12th. One of their properties in up for lease and some of thier cinemas in the Indiana and Illinois markets are now owbed by a Bollywood firm for thier running Bollywood films. The news was unclear if the company filed a chapter 11 or not. But it appears that Village Entertainment is out of business for thier website hasn’t been updated according to one poster’s account within the news forum.