Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search
Newser - Current News - Breaking Stories

« Back to the grid | Next story »

Web Lifts Holiday Gloom of Retailers

Posted Nov 23, 07 10:38 AM CST in Technology,  Business 

(Newser) – Cyberspace may be this year’s favorite holiday destination as shoppers looking for bargains and trying to escape crowds eschew traditional brick-and-mortar malls for a cornucopia of retail opportunities online, reports Reuters. Retailers from Apple to Wal-Mart offered some of their best deals online starting Thursday, trumping the traditional Black Friday shopping madness that starts the day after Thanksgiving.

Among the online biggies: Wal-Mart offered a 47-inch flat-screen TV for $1,298 and Circuit City highlighted a Blu-ray disc player for $400. Retailers, worried rising food and gas prices and the housing crisis may sap holiday spending, are hoping online sales provide a bright spot. Stores offered shoppers cell phone text messages and wake-up calls to get them deals.
Source: Reuters

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • 'Sea Change' In Store for Retail

    Dec 27, 08 10:28 AM CST
    'Sea Change' In Store for Retail Shaken by a tough holiday season and bracing for more trouble, the retail scene may look very different in 2009, the Wall Street Journal reports. Some stores will be reducing inventory and cutting suppliers, which could force small manufacturers to fold. Retail bankruptcies could abound. "We will have a lot fewer stores by the middle of 2009,” said an expert. “It's happening very, very quickly.”
    More »

  • Amazon Has 'Best Ever' Holiday Season

    Dec 26, 08 3:10 PM CST
    Amazon Has 'Best Ever' Holiday Season The Grinch apparently didn’t sour shoppers on Amazon this year: The company said today the 2008 holiday season was its “best ever,” MarketWatch reports. Amazon sold more than 6.3 million items worldwide on Dec. 15, its peak day, amounting to “a record-breaking 72.9 items per second.” Last year it sold 5.4 million units on its top day. More »

  • Storms Threaten to Wipe Out Retailers' Last Hopes

    Dec 21, 08 5:26 AM CST
    Storms Threaten to Wipe Out Retailers' Last Hopes Retailers were extending hours and cutting prices deeper in a last-ditch attempt to attract a final wave of holiday shoppers and mitigate the impact of major storms in the Midwest, Northwest and Northeast, Reuters reports. Some two-thirds of shoppers still have holiday shopping left to do, according to surveys, but the storms may further cut their already-meagre lists. The bad weather is hitting at the worst possible time as stores struggle with flagging sales amid a major economic downturn.
    More »

  • Declines in Gift Cards, Self-Splurges Hurt Retailers

    Dec 10, 08 4:57 PM CST
    Declines in Gift Cards, Self-Splurges Hurt Retailers Naughty or nice, America’s retail stores can’t look forward to two of the holiday season’s usual boons: gift card sales and “self-gifting” splurges, MarketWatch reports. About 44% of shoppers say they will not buy gift cards this year, up from 26% last year, a marketing study says. Meanwhile, people are being stingy with themselves as they shop for others. More »

  • Shoppers Can't Halt Commercial Mortgage Crisis

    Nov 28, 08 9:02 AM CST
    Shoppers Can't Halt Commercial Mortgage Crisis Black Friday shoppers hunting for holiday bargains won't be enough to stave off what's likely to become the next economic crisis. Malls from Michigan to Georgia are entering foreclosure, commercial victims of the same events poisoning the housing market. Hotels in Tucson, Ariz., and Hilton Head, SC, also are about to default on their mortgages. More »

A sign offering Internet shopping hangs over shoppers at a Costco Wholesale store in Culver City, Calif.   (Associated Press)
Devoted Mac fans begin their Black Friday shopping at the Fifth Avenue Apple store at midnight on Friday morning, Nov. 23, 2007 in New York. (AP Photo/Jin Lee)   (Associated Press)
Jessie Pascua, right, stretches his legs, as he and other consumers line-up early outside a Best Buy for an after Thanksgiving sale Thursday, Nov. 22, 2007, in Los Angeles. Black Friday is one of the...   (Associated Press)
Shoppers are spending more time shopping on their computers this season.   (Associated Press)
Book buyers start their holiday shopping at the Union Square Barnes & Noble on Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2007 in New York.   (Associated Press)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Our editors also recommend:

Related Threads

(1 of 3)

Tags

retail sales • holiday shopping • online retailers


Loading...

Today's Most Popular

[ Stories ]

Threads

Loading...

Other Business Stories