Weather dampens holiday sales

Chicago – Wintry weather across the Midwest and Northeast took its toll on store traffic, as a report by ShopperTrak showed that in-store sales for the week of Dec. 9 to Dec. 15 were down 0.8% from the same week last year. New data from ShopperTrak also shows that in-store shopper traffic also fell last week by 19.9% compared to the same time period in 2012.



Saturday, Dec. 14 saw a decline in both retail sales and shopper traffic, largely a result of a weekend snowstorm that hit the Midwest and Northeast. Compared to the same day last year, brick-and-mortar retail sales fell 5.4% while in-store shopper traffic fell 25.9%.



ShopperTrak expects that several of the days leading up to Christmas, including "Super Saturday" on Dec. 21, will be among the busiest shopping days of the holiday season.



"Last weekend's extreme weather prevented many consumers from completing their holiday shopping," said Bill Martin, ShopperTrak founder. "But those items remain on their shopping lists and we expect these individuals will add to the high levels of in-store shopper activity we usually see the weekend before Christmas."