Wal-Mart ringing yuletide in early
By Andria Cheng
MarketWatch
NEW YORK — Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said it will cut prices on some of the most popular toys and speed up the opening of Christmas shops in its stores nationwide as it tries to lure budget-conscious shoppers and jump-start its biggest selling season.
Ten toys, from butterfly-winged Barbie Mariposa to Fur Real Newborn Animals, are being priced at $10 apiece, the Bentonville, Ark.-based company said last week.
Wal-Mart cited several reasons for getting an early start on the holiday selling season. Shoppers are facing higher energy prices and food costs as well as a sluggish economy and the credit crunch.
They are expected to start their Christmas shopping earlier and make other changes to help stretch their holiday budgets.
While a majority of U.S. shoppers don't plan to cut back on how much they spend this Christmas season, more than a third plan to buy less-expensive items and to buy for fewer people this year, Wal-Mart said, citing a September survey of 1,000 adults it commissioned.
The stakes are high for Wal-Mart and other retailers. The holiday season is when many retailers make their profit for the year.
The National Retail Federation said U.S. retailers should brace for their worst holiday season since 2002, while other forecasts are even gloomier.
Value has been the key message from retailers this year as consumers, battered by economic concerns and a volatile stock market, curtail discretionary purchases and seek bargains.
Home Depot Inc. said last month that it's cutting prices on 1,200 items, from paint to a toilet repair kit, by as much as 50 percent. And Wal-Mart rival Target Corp. said it's touting more on the value side of its "Expect More. Pay Less" message.
Wal-Mart and other value-oriented retailers have outperformed their respective retail segment rivals this year.
More than half of Americans age 18-24 plan to begin their Christmas shopping at least a month earlier this year, and 3 in 10 moms shopping at Wal-Mart plan to get started a full three months earlier this year, the Wal-Mart survey found.
