Falling gas prices. Soaring stock market. Unemployment at a six-year-low.
All signs point to a successful holiday shopping season. Despite the economic tail winds, though, retailers are finding themselves having to work to get shoppers into stores.
Why? Five years into the economic recovery, most Americans still are struggling.
Gas prices may be hovering at a four-year low, but Americans are paying more for food, health care and other costs. Unemployment is falling, too, but wage growth has been stagnant. And even though the stock and housing markets have improved, Americans haven’t changed their deal-hungry shopping habits.
“Retail therapy is out the window for most Americans,” said Ken Perkins, president of RetailMetrics LLC, a research firm.