TAKING STOCK: THE BOTTOM LINE ON THE SHOE BIZ.(holiday spending in department stores, Unites States economy, Saks Inc.)

Footwear News, December, 2006

HOLIDAY FIRST READ: Given somewhat mixed November same-store sales results - though a decent start to holiday sales over Black Friday weekend - the outlook for holiday spending has become cautious. Consumer spending bellwether Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said November comps were down 0.5 percent at its discount stores, but competitor Target Corp. reported a comp increase of 5.9 percent. Wal-Mart, however, guided December comps to rise only as much as 1 percent versus Target's guidance for a 3.5 percent to 5.5 percent increase. J.C. Penney Co., which reported a 1.4 percent rise in November comps, guided for a low single-digit increase in December comps. Richard Hastings, senior retail analyst at Smyth-Bernard Sands LLC, noted in a report that holiday sales for big-box stores...

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