Winter Holidays

Washington, D.C. – The National Retail Federation (NRF) expects holiday sales to increase 3.9% to $602.1 billion, up slightly from last year’s 3.5% increase. The forecast is higher than the 10-year average holiday sales growth of 3.3%.

The group noted, however, that its forecast hinges “on Congress and the Administration's actions" over the next 45 days as the government shutdown entered a third day

Plano, Texas -- J.C. Penney Co. is set to launch Disney branded shops inside 565 Penney stores on Oct.4. The shops will offer toys, collectibles and children's apparel designed for Penney and showcasing various Disney characters, including those from Toy Story and Monsters University and Disney Junior shows.

Austin, Texas – More than nine-in-10 (91%) holiday shoppers admit to overspending on presents, according to a new survey from RetailMeNot, with 60% of overspenders saying they do so because they thought giving a gift the person would love was worth the extra money.

Apparel, cosmetics and home furnishings retailer Dillard’s is offering a custom edition of the Southern Living Christmas Cookbook to benefit the Ronald McDonald House Charities. 

The exclusive, 288-page hardbound cookbook is filled with holiday recipes, color photos, menus, decorating tips and entertaining ideas and costs $10. It is available at all Dillard’s stores nationwide, as well as online. Proceeds from the sale of the cookbooks will benefit local Ronald McDonald Houses operated by RMHC Chapters in Dillard’s markets.

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4

Seattle -- Amazon.com announced plans to add more than 70,000 full-time seasonal jobs in its U.S. fulfillment centers this holiday season, a 40% increase rise over last year. The company said it hopes to eventually convert many of those temporary seasonal opportunities into permanent roles.

Dallas – Neiman Marcus Group is offering free standard shipping and returns for all domestic purchases made online through Neimanmarcus.com and Bergdorfgoodman.com as well as Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman stores.

"The customer has always been at the center of the Neiman Marcus business model. Permanent free shipping and returns have been a top request and we are happy to be able to make this change just in time for the holiday shopping season." said Wanda Gierhart, chief marketing officer, Neiman Marcus Group.

GRAPEVINE, Texas — Multichannel video game retailer GameStop has announced plans to hire approximately 17,000 employees nationwide as the company prepares for the upcoming PlayStation 4 and Xbox One console launches, as well as the busy holiday shopping season.