Utah businesses gear up for holiday shopping as inflation eases, consumer sentiment rises

SALT LAKE CITY — Inflation has been “the grinch that stole spending” in the past several years, especially during the holiday season.

But that isn’t the case this year, according to Zions Bank senior economist Robert Spendlove.

Data from the University of Utah Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute shows, generally, Utahns are feeling better about the economy than they did last year as consumer sentiment has increased nearly 17% over the last year, signaling customers are starting to regain their sense of purchasing power.

“Thursday marks the start of peak holiday shopping season, which stretches from Thanksgiving to Christmas,” Spendlove said. “With Thanksgiving falling on Nov. 28 this year, the traditional spending window is compressed to only 26 days. What this does is it squeezes the amount of time that shoppers can find gifts, and it also squeezes the amount of time that retailers can generate revenue during this crucial time.”

According to the National Retail Federation, a record 183.4 million people are planning to shop online and in stores this coming Black Friday.

Spendlove said holiday spending is projected to grow between 2.5 and 3.5% nationally, in line with historical spending growth.

Much of that spending will be driven by online purchases, which are expected to jump between about 7 and 9% compared to last year.

Still, Spendlove and Katie and John Waltman, the brother-sister duo and co-owners of Katie Waltman Boutique in Salt Lake City, encouraged people to shop locally this holiday season.

“People always talk about brick and mortar kind of being dead, but I do think we’ve both seen that people still kind of crave that in store shopping experience and a curated shopping experience,” said Katie Waltman. “We kind of have both where we can sell online. We have the modern conveniences of having an in store pickup and things like that, but we still have where you can walk in and get customer service and people helping you find what you need.”

Spendlove also said that Utah’s per capita personal income grew nearly 5%, faster than the national average and outpacing inflation.

“Inflation slowed to 1.3% in our region over the last year, compared to 2.6% nationally. That means Utahns dollars will stretch further this holiday season,” Spendlove said.

This is certainly welcome news to the Waltman siblings and many other local business owners who rely on strong sales during the holiday season.

“This is our make or break season,” John Waltman said. “It’s really important that we put our best foot forward for these two months and get as much traffic as possible.”