It’s go time for retailers as the holiday season kicks into high gear. With Black Friday the last day of November, there are six fewer shopping days between Thanksgiving and Christmas, so retailers have started Black Friday deals even earlier than normal and have even more on the line. According to Cowen retail analyst Oliver Chen, “"We're in a very strong consumer environment. If you're having difficulties, what does it mean for the future?" Morning Consult Economic Intelligence currently holds at 110.2 — close to its highest measure in a year and above the 100 line that divides positive from negative impressions of economic outlook.
But before holiday shopping officially begins, many other retailers made headlines this month. Alibaba’s Singles Day on November 11 beat Amazon’s Prime Day sales within an hour of being live, generating $13 billion in sales. Reports came out that luxury reseller The RealReal had sold counterfeit merchandise, calling into question its authentication process. And lastly, LVMH announced it would purchase Tiffany for $16.2 billion, the largest ever in the luxury sector, giving LVMH more access to the US market and helping Tiffany in Europe and China.
Here’s what else caught our eye in November:
The start of the school year and back from summer vacation always come in strong, with retailers still focused on back to school rush while already preparing for the holiday boom. Within the retail industry, a few policy issues have the potential to impact the broader industry. Potential tariff increases from China could have the retail industry increasing prices passed on to the consumer. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ consumer price index, apparel prices haven't gone up meaningfully in at least 7 years, and for items like toys and cosmetics, prices have actually been trending lower. “We’ve trained customers to be so cheap," Sucharita Kodali, a retail analyst at Forrester Research is quoted in Axios. “Amazon is a symptom of the consumer obsession with low prices,” not the cause.