How to woo wary buyers

With the calendar barely turned on Halloween, the holidays are just coming into focus for shoppers.

Not so for retailers. Christmas is a mere 54 shopping days away, and for some chains as much as 40 percent of annual profit will be generated during that stretch.

They’ve spent months plotting sales strategies amid a wobbly economy whose indicators seem to point in different directions daily. There’s high unemployment and uncertainty about whether the housing market has bottomed out. On the other hand, the stock market has rebounded and the economy showed renewed growth in the third quarter.

Bottom line: The National Retail Federation expects holiday spending to ring in at $437.6 billion, a 1 percent decline from last year.

In a poll by Consumer Reports, 65 percent of consumers said they expect to cut back on overall holiday spending.

Deloitte, in its holiday retail forecast, said “caution still reigns, as two-thirds of consumers plan to shop differently due to concerns about the economy.”

Specifically, experts think shoppers will refrain from buying for themselves; will make lists and stick to them; will buy basic staples, such as socks, for gifts; and will buy early but comparison shop online first.

That means stores must employ new tactics to capture as much of the holiday dollar as possible.

Some charged out early with holiday displays well before Halloween. Others will try to spur sales by launching “doorbuster” deals earlier than usual. Sears, for instance, will sell a 42-inch Zenith plasma TV (regular price $649) on Nov. 7 for $499. The chain says it will do a weekly discounted item each Saturday until Christmas.

Here’s a snapshot of what some players in Atlanta are doing to compete:

H. Stockton Atlanta

Chip Stockton of the family-owned men’s clothier H. Stockton says he’s made “one big move” —- dropping prices 20 to 30 percent.

He started carrying suits for $595, down from $895, for example.

With four metro Atlanta stores, H. Stockton is known for its detailed service: clerks wrap everything in signature red boxes. But luxury buyers also suffered from the downturn, so Stockton said he’s had to change tactics.

In some cases he changed vendors, he said, to offer the highest quality available for the price.

Said Stockton: “My job is a whole lot tougher than it used to be to get what people are interested in buying from us.”

Home Depot

Home Depot gets out early with its holiday decor: Some stores were set as early as Sept. 15, and all were to have been done by the end of October, said spokesman Ron Defeo.

He said the chain, which has emphasized price cuts all year on regular stock, expects customers to want to save money on holiday items as well. Home Depot also thinks buyers will favor traditional decoration colors this year: red, yellow and gold.

The home-improvement giant ordered about the same amount of inventory as last year, he said, including 76 types of exterior decorations, dozens of prelit trees and all kinds of lights. Home Depot, which unlike some retailers has its busiest season in the spring, doesn’t hire for the holiday season.

Toys R Us

The giant toy chain is hiring about 35,000 seasonal employees nationwide, about the same as the past two years, said spokeswoman Jennifer Albano.

The company has firmed its position as a category killer by acquiring FAO Schwarz, KB Toys, eToys.com, Toys.com and babyuniverse.com. Toys R Us is setting up FAO Schwarz boutiques in its regular stores and “Holiday Express” kiosks at malls nationwide.

“The last things parents will cut from their budgets are gifts for their children at Christmas,” said Albano. “We don’t see parents rushing to the cheap.”

Still, she pointed to Zhu Zhu Pets Hamsters, which is on the chain’s list of 36 “hot toys.” The toy hamsters, which can run obstacle courses, start at $10.

UPS

Shipping giant UPS isn’t a traditional retailer, but its holiday shipping volume is an economic bellwether. It plans to hire 50,000 seasonal workers nationwide —- down from 60,000 in 2007.

The part-time helpers typically work in warehouses or on delivery trucks. About 1,300 people will be added in Georgia, said UPS spokesman Norman Black.

The company starts planning for Christmas in the second week of January, he said. The company believes its shipping levels in the fourth quarter will be lower than in the fourth quarter last year.

One bright spot: UPS plans to set up a temporary gateway in Bangor, Maine, to service catalog giant L.L.Bean. Mori Luggage & Gifts

Last year, John Mori, president of Mori Luggage & Gifts, predicted the recession would end in May or June.

He admits that was a little optimistic, but he wasn’t too far off. Some experts believe the recession ended in August.

This holiday season, he believes, store sales will be up slightly, especially if the Dow Jones Industrial Average stays above 10,000 points.

Still, Mori said the managers of his 28-store chain told him customers are clamoring for sales.

“We’re having more sale events in our stores than we have in any previous holiday season,” he said, starting with a “rare” 20 percent off the entire store event on the morning of Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving.

He said he managed inventory all year so he could put new merchandise on the shelves in November and December.

He’s also focused on gifts under $50, such as the Japanese game Jishaku, stainless steel wallets and a “jumbo” 64-ounce flask. “It gets a laugh!” he said.