Retailers Look To Wean Shoppers Off The 24/7 Discount Party

In the dark days of the recession, retailers began cranking their promotional hype machines in overdrive, offering an increasingly loud drumbeat of “30 percent off the store”-type offers to coax cautious consumers to spend their money. Shoppers got hooked on the deals. But now, in sunnier economic times, some major stores are trying to turn out the lights on the 24/7 discount party. Preppy-chic clothier Ralph Lauren has slashed the number of promotions it promises to online shoppers and has made its discounts less deep. Handbag giant Michael Kors is demanding to be taken off department stores’ “friends and family” sales, worried those bonanzas blemish its brand cachet. Big-box shoe store DSW told investors last week that it is moving away from storewide sales events, instead opting for narrow, targeted deals such as a $29.95 sandal event. Experts say the moves are something of a reckoning for an industry that has struggled during this long-running promotion-palooza. Read more at The Washington Post.