California Apparel News

Call it a Christmas comeback.

Torrential rains in Southern California and lingering economic anxiety throughout the state did not hold consumers back from spending more on clothes and fashion during Christmas 2010.

“If last year’s holiday story was about gaining some stability, this year’s is about getting back to growth,” said Michael McNamara, vice president of research and analysis for MasterCard Advisors’ SpendingPulse report, which found that American retail sales grew 5.5 percent during this holiday season compared with the same time in 2009.

This year’s rebound was a marked difference from the sluggish but steady holiday retail season of 2009, according to the Dec. 27 SpendingPulse report, which measures payments made on the MasterCard network between Nov. 5 and Dec. 24, as well as cash and check payments made to retailers.

In particular, fashion made a big comeback. Total apparel grew 11.2 percent in sales compared with the 2009 holiday season, which saw a decline of 0.4 percent, according to the SpendingPulse report. Menswear grew 10.5 percent. Women’s apparel grew by 5.6 percent. Total e-commerce sales increased 15.4 percent, McNamara said.

Shopping-center trade group International Council of Shopping Centers also confirmed Christmas sales were good. Retail sales increased by 1 percent for the week ending Dec. 25 compared with the prior week, according to the ICSC–Goldman Sachs Weekly Chain-Store Sales Index. In a year-over-year basis, sales ending Dec. 25 increased 4.8 percent, the index found.

Christmas falling on a Saturday was a big help, according to Michael Niemira, the ICSC’s chief economist. “The last-minute holiday-spending lift was aided by consumers who had more money as a result of the improving economy,” he said.

But the rebound in national sales did not mean a slam dunk for independent retailers and boutiques. Wakim Kivorkian owns two luxury fashion boutiques under the Michael Nusskern nameplate in Orange County, Calif.

He reported being pleased with the progress of the Christmas season’s business. But he was not cheering. “It was like last year. I did not see a big difference,” he said. “But in these days, when you are doing okay, you are so happy.”

The season started with a bang. More than 212 million people shopped on Black Friday (Nov. 26), the traditional start of the holiday season, and spent $45 billion, according to the National Retail Federation.

Typically, sales slow down after Black Friday until mid-December, when crowds usually return to shopping centers and retail streets. But this year, record-breaking rains hit much of Southern California in the final week before Christmas. The extreme weather drove shoppers away from open-air malls and retail streets, according to Fred Levine, co-owner of the M.Fredric chain of contemporary boutiques based in Agoura Hills, Calif.

“No question that the week before Christmas could have exceeded expectations,” he said. “[But] the consumer was driven to one-stop-shop malls because of the harsh rains.” When storms passed a few days before Christmas, he said, there was a big rush at his stores.

Retail traffic at Newport Beach, Calif.’s Fashion Island mall increased 8 percent during December. “Which we’re very pleased with, considering the amount of rain we received,” said Nina Robinson, vice president of marketing for Fashion Island owner Irvine Co. Retail Properties.

Heavy rains also took a bite out of sales at the open-air Citadel Outlets mall, located just outside of downtown Los Angeles, but crowds returned with clear skies. They were encouraged with extended hours at retailers such as Old Navy, which stayed open nonstop from 8 a.m. Dec. 23 until 6 p.m. Dec. 24. They also were attracted to deep discounts such as the $12 hoodies at Aeropostale.

Management and tenants of enclosed malls, including the Glendale Galleria in Glendale, Calif., and Los Angeles’ Beverly Center, reported record-breaking crowds during the rains. “With the rains coming down hard for a week, we had an extra-great holiday here at the Beverly Center,” said Gila Leibovitch, who co-owns the boutiques Premier Men and Premier Kids. Sales at the kids’ store spiked 10 percent during the rainstorms.

And the big crowds returned to the malls after Christmas. At Glendale Galleria, Dec. 26 was the second-busiest shopping day of the year, after Black Friday, said Shoshana Puccia, marketing director of the Galleria. The retail center’s parking lot was near capacity throughout much of the day.

Business was also brisk at the Beverly Center after Christmas. On Dec. 26, merchants reported 10 percent of their business was returns, 10 percent was exchanges and 80 percent was shoppers buying new items for themselves, said Susan Vance, marketing director of the Beverly Center.

If Christmas 2010 was about recovery, the business environment of 2011 will continue to strengthen gains made after a harsh recession. But it’s not going to be easy, said M.Fredric’s Levine.

“We have developed better retail strategies during these challenging times, and the consumer is getting over the shock of 2009 and 2010,” Levine said. “I still think 2011 will be a year to keep holding on while unemployment decreases and housing markets heal.”