After the worst holiday sales season in 40 years, up to 73,000 retail establishments could close in the first half of 2009, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers. Together with plummeting consumer confidence, also reaching its lowest level in decades, this news heralds a retrenchment in consumer spending in 2009 without recent precedent, experts say. The ICSC prediction follows a net loss of about 33,000 retail establishments in 2008, with 148,000 total closings offset only partially by a smaller number of openings.ICSC pointed to the plans of national chains like Sears and Talbots-- already in motion--to close hundreds of unprofitable stores, as well as the bankruptcy or liquidation of big chains like Circuit City, Linens'n Things, Mervyn's and Sharper Image. This wave of closings and bankruptcies will result from two adverse trends coinciding: The credit crunch is making banks especially leery of lending to troubled businesses, coupled with a sharp reduction in consumer spending.
MediaPost Publications - Happy New Year? Retail Tanks, 73,000 Stores Could Close - 01/02/2009.
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