The final week to Christmas has been marked by an unprecedented number of retail chains offering large discounts to lure shoppers into their stores. Department stores are offering discounts of up to 50 per cent with fashion chains hot behind them. It is not that different in supermarkets either which are already marking down perishable foods which are proving to be hard to shift at full price. Most retailers have seen sales dip following the Black Friday/Cyber Monday rise and have been flooded with returns so all eyes are on a last minute drive to meet targets in what has proved to be a tough season. It is much the same online with retail chains like Long Tall Sally offering up to 50 per cent discounts and ASOS reducing gift lines by 30 per cent.
“There are no two ways about it. Business is tough. We’re expecting to see major fall-out once we enter 2018,” commented one MD of a mid-sized fashion chain. “Anyone who expects to end the quarter positively has already pared everything back to the bone, closed unprofitable stores and reduced their risk.”
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