Retailers face sales season with less stock and fewer offers to other years

Retailers are heading into the new sales season with less stock after a “very good” Christmas period and, for this reason, they do not plan to offer “as many” discounts as in other years.

Most establishments will kick off a campaign for new offers on Tuesday, a sales period they head into with “optimism.”

In interviews with the Catalan News Agency (ACN) by representatives of the employers’ association Pimec Comerç and the association of commercial and tourist hubs Barcelona Oberta, the sector says that December has been a “good month” thanks to favourable temperatures, the calendar, and more Asian tourists.

“It won’t be a rocket launch, but given the circumstances, we believe it will be a fairly good campaign,” president of Pimec Comerç, Antoni Torres, anticipates. He speaks of an atmosphere of “conscious optimism” among business owners.

The employers’ association avoided making any forecasts, but assured that it perceives a “predisposition” among consumers to spend.

Good Christmas campaign

Compared to other periods, this year’s January sales come at a time that shops see the impacts of the pandemic and inflation to be practically over.

The spokesperson for Barcelona Oberta, Joaquim de Toca, said that this was noticeable during the Christmas campaign. “December has been very good for three reasons: the weather, the calendar effect, and because we have seen more tourists than normal, especially Asians,” he sums up.

The fact that it didn't rain over December but that it was cold meant that consumers were keen to “go out and buy” winter clothes, unlike what happened last year.

Regarding the calendar, he says the fact the Sunday after Black Friday fell in December also “benefited” sales in the last month of the year.

In relation to tourists, he recalls that at the end of 2023, China still had restrictions on travel due to the pandemic, something that is no longer the case.

This has all combined to stores having fewer products in stock to put on sale compared to other years.

More stores expected to start sales on January 7

In previous years, establishments accumulated stock they had not managed to sell, and brought the discounts season forward to offer them during the first week of the year.

This year, however, the “majority” of stores are waiting for the Three Kings to pass, and start the sales period on January 7.

A minority of large establishments located on commercial axes such as Passeig de Gràcia in Barcelona, ​​Rambla de Catalunya or Portal de l’Àngel, however, have started discounts already.

Signs announcing offers are already on display in windows, contrasting once again with those of small stores.

“They are two different worlds,” laments the sector Pimec representative, who is wary of “aggressive” offers.