ST. LOUIS — Holiday shopping is about to shift into high gear and retailers stocked up early in anticipation of any supply chain issues. This year, that could mean deals for those procrastinators.
As retailers have stocked up early on items for this holiday season in anticipation of any supply chain issues, some stores may have overstocked products that could result in more discounts as time gets closer to Christmas.
That’s according to Jerome Katz, a Ph.D. business and entrepreneur professor at St. Louis University.
“Think about how bad supply chain problems were 6-12 months ago. It was really awful and so that’s when most retailers were putting in their orders for Christmas,” Katz told Spectrum News.
“And with that fresh in their minds, they were thinking we’re going to have all sorts of trouble. So, most retailers actually did an overboard job of ordering, figuring that stuff might not get made, it might not get shipped, might not arrive in time.”
He mentioned that Adobe Analytics reported that online shoppers encountered two billion out-of-stock messages during the month of October, but surveys from retailers and customers indicate they are not panicked.
One of the largest accounting firms, Deloitte, surveyed about 40 supply chain managers where none of them reported supply chain issues, according to Katz. An additional company conducted a consumer survey that resulted in people not reporting high levels of out-of-stock problems.
“So, right now it looks good. If we don’t have supply chain issues and all the companies are fully stocked, there’s a greater chance for late season discounts,” Katz said.
If stores still have products several days before Christmas, “the chance for late season discounts is higher than it would be in a typical year because (retailers) are well situated in terms of the supply chain,” he added.
Katz noted that there is always potential for shortages on the hottest electronics and the hottest toys, but there may be solid supplies on other items.
“Carrying that supply after Christmas can be really problematic. So, trying to clear out what they’ve got, we probably will see more sales in the late Christmas season than we typically would,” he said.
