14 • Footwear Insight ~ July/August 2024 footwearinsight.com
RETAIL
ISSUES
TO
WATCH
RETAILERS FACE SOME NEW AND
RECURRING ISSUES AS H2 TAKES HOLD.
S
ome 17 states from Alabama and
Texas in the South to Connecticut
and Massachusetts in the Northeast
will offer their residents tax-free
shopping days before the end of August.
Most are two- or three-day periods that are
limited to purchases under a certain amount
and generally benefit clothing, footwear and
school supplies. In two states, Maryland and
Connecticut, residents will have a tax-free
period for a week. In Florida, residents will
have two weeks for tax-free purchases.
Research firm Circana offers up a few clear
trends for the upcoming B-T-S season as
SHOP TALK
By Bob McGee
T
here are plenty of challenges facing retailers during
the second half of 2024, which got under-way earlier
this month. There are new challenges, recurring
challenges, and challenges yet to be fully revealed.
To move successfully into the new year in January,
these issues will undoubtedly need to be addressed or hurdled
in the immediate months ahead. Among them: a possible,
changing (and more positive) landscape for interest rates and
inflation; new Back-To-School and Holiday seasons complete
with some key, reliable brands facing their own key issues and
excess product overhang for others; and a presidential election
that may cast uncertainty and spark market volatility as the
calendar approaches 2025.
Here, with some feedback from independent retailers, Footwear
Insight examines three issues that should be on all retail radar screens
during the dog days of summer and the cooler fall days ahead.
TOPIC 1
CAN BACK-TO-SCHOOL PROVIDE A NEEDED SPARK AFTER ANY SUMMER DOLDRUMS?
