Contrary to the West, Christmas cheers India’s retail

While globally, Christmas joy may not have brought in a

much expected retail boom, but in India, consumers were seen loosening their purse strings yet again. Post buoyant Eid and Diwali; consumers are spending on everything from wines to smartphones and clothing spreading Christmas joy among retailers.

On the international front, research firm ShopperTrak now expects an increase of 2.5 per cent, rather than 3.3 per cent. “The season will be an OK season. It won`t be as strong as last year, but it won’t be as bad as feared heading into it,” had said Joseph Feldman, Managing Director and Senior Research Analyst at Telsey Advisory Group. Some of the winning chains this holiday season appeared to be Macy’s, TJX, Michael Kors, Costco, Gap, Anthropologie and Walmart, Feldman said, citing the number of shoppers in their stores, their products and online presence. But consumers’ buying trends showed generally they were holding back.

Back home, retailers claimed that sales in the seven-to-ten days leading up to Christmas shot up 20-30 per cent over the same period last year, despite the absence of major discounts and promotion schemes. Better-than-expected consumer demand is likely to encourage retailers to hold back end-of-season discounts till mid-January, unlike last year when they advanced markdowns by a week because of poor sales.

Retailers such as Spencer’s Retail, ITC Wills Lifestyle, Future Group are confident of matching the sales of Diwali season. Demand has remained firm since Diwali as retail chains feel rising Sensex and the government’s recent policy reforms have boosted the consumer sentiment.