Super Saturday Snowstorm Impact Mixed

December 22, 2009  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in on December 23, 2009 A winter storm that struck the East Coast this past weekend produced conflicting reports on how much the weather hurt retailers on the Saturday before Christmas, known in shopping parlance as "Super Saturday," according to Planalytics Business Weather Intelligence.

A lot depends on not just that it snowed, but also where and on how many consumers it snows.

"In summary, we estimate that at least $2 billion was lost because of this storm," said Planalytics Chief Operating Officer Scott A. Bernhardt. "That is a significant portion of Super Saturday sales that will not be recovered. Recovery will be seen most at retailers with 'must have' items (e.g., Toys R Us, Best Buy) and destinations (e.g., Walmart), but the industry as a whole will not be able to completely make up for so many lost shopping hours in so many heavily-populated centers."

Additional statistics on the storm's impact on retail for the weekend:
* Pre- and post-storm, consumers were shopping "to lists" and focused on getting in and out of stores as quickly as possible.
* Super Saturday Sales typically account for $15 billion, one of the top shopping days of the year, according to Mastercard Spending Pulse. Reports indicate the mall traffic was down 10 percent on Super Saturday across the country. Some malls closed early on Super Saturday while many individual stores and restaurants closed earlier than planned.
* Some traffic moved up to Friday (up 65 percent versus 2008) evening and/or shifted to post-storm on Sunday.
* While traffic outside of the northeast was reportedly up compared to last year, approximately one-third of all super Saturday sales typically come from the Northeast, according to Associated Press and Fox Business.
* While significant amounts of snow fell in December 2008, these typically occurred in less populated areas than the Super Saturday Snowstorm of 2009.
* While reports from NBC Universal show that online sales were up 14 percent on Super Saturday due to the snowstorm, one must keep this in perspective. According to the National Retail Federation, online sales only represent 5 percent of the total industry sales.

Bernhardt said retailers are coping in the storm's wake with additional hours through earlier opening and later closing times; and additional promotions to drive traffic into stores and online.

"Some Super Saturday Sales--but not all--will be made up in time for Christmas," Bernhardt said in conclusion. "In light of a difficult economy and original projections for a negative 1 percent projection in holiday sales by the National Retail Federation, the Super Saturday Snowstorm of 2009 will go down as a net-negative to the retail industry."