Despite persistent economic woes—such as 8.6% unemployment nationally and fears of European contagion—Americans are splurging on LED lights, 16-foot-tall inflatable Santas and pre-decorated artificial trees, Bloomberg reports. U.S. consumers will spend $6 billion on decorations this year, the most in at least seven years, according to the National Retail Federation, which began tracking the data in 2005. Home Depot, the world’s largest home-improvement retailer, and its close rival Lowe’s are trying to capitalize on the holidays, boosting orders for trees and decorations to help offset sinking demand for appliances amid projections that housing prices will keep falling next year. “This is a business we should own,” Home Depot Chief Financial Officer Carol Tome says. “We were selling the most trees of any retailer in America, but we weren’t offering the ornaments or the light strings or the tree stands. So we expanded our assortment.” Holiday décor sales could climb 8.1% this year, rising for a second straight year, according to the retail group, citing an October survey of consumers by BIGresearch. More than 68% of consumers may indulge, the federation says, the highest level in three years.
Today’s poll question How will your holiday décor spending compare this year to years past?
