As retailers charge into the fourth quarter, the big question looms: What is the must-have gift for this holiday season?
Al Frank, partner in charge of the consumer business practice at Deloitte & Touche in Los Angeles, responds that the iPhone from Apple might be this year’s equivalent of the Sony Playstation or Tickle Me Elmo of Christmases past. But then he corrected himself. “The closest thing to a must-have is the gift card,” he said. “It might be the easy answer for shoppers because there’s nothing really hot out there.”
Stores could use a must-have item because forecasts point to a slow holiday season. Deloitte Research predicts sales will increase 4.5 to 5 percent, and the National Retail Federation forecasts a gain of only 4 percent. That’s well below the 10-year average increase of 4.8 percent and would be the worst year since 2002, when sales rose a mere 1.3 percent.
Higher interest rates, rising mortgage costs and high gasoline prices are blamed for the expected slowdown. “There’s no question that with interest rates going up, people feel less wealthy,” said Frank. But, remaining somewhat of an optimist, he added, “When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping.”
Help Wanted?
News Corp. honcho Rupert Murdoch has said that the Fox Business Network, which made its cable TV debut amid much fanfare this week, would be “more for Main Street than Wall Street.”
It’s apparently not going to be particularly Wilshire Boulevard, (or Sunset or Ventura, either), at least for the time being. The L.A. bureau, which is downtown on Armacost Avenue, is currently staffed by one producer and one photographer.
“We’re hiring,” said FBC spokeswoman Courtney Dolan. The studio is in New York, and there are bureaus in San Francisco, Washington D.C. and Chicago, too. In all, Dolan said, the business network will have about 300 employees, a team far smaller than rivals CNBC and Bloomberg Television. Reinforcements could be on the way, however, given New Corp.’s recent acquisition of Dow Jones.
What Do I Hear
Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne are auctioning off their art, furniture and collectibles to benefit the Sharon Osbourne Colon Cancer Foundation.
The items are from the couple’s homes in Malibu, Beverly Hills and London. The sale, administered by Julien’s Auctions, will be held Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, at the Gibson Guitar Showroom in Beverly Hills. Bids can be placed in person, by phone or on the Internet.
Ozzy, who will perform a benefit concert at the Staples Center on the first night of the auction, may be having second thoughts. “I don’t know why we are selling everything, as I want it all,” he said.
Todd Cunningham is the assistant managing editor of the Business Journal. He can be reached at
[email protected]
