The head of the Vermont Retail Association says prospects are uncertain for the upcoming holiday shopping season.
Tasha Wallis says fall sales figures don’t look good, but she and her group’s members are hoping for the best for the period between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
That’s when many Vermont stores traditionally ring up between 25 and 40 percent of their annual sales.
In addition to recent grim national economic news, Wallis says two factors could hurt.
One is the decline in the Canadian dollar, making shopping in Vermont a less attractive option for people from north of the border.
The other is that Thanksgiving is coming relatively late on the calendar this year, making for a shorter period between it and Christmas.