Will holiday sales be up at better men’s stores?

Question: I have a better menswear store and business has really popped in the last week. Does this mean we should expect bigger gains over the holiday season?

Answer: We have seen gains among some better stores over the last week, including some that are up as much as 20%, but others are not doing as well. At this point, it’s hard to tell if we will exceed moderate growth for the season. But one thing is for sure–you need to clear as much inventory as you can now since most retailers started marking down early and they’ll be little left to give post-Christmas.