Last-minute shoppers come through for 2009 holiday season

ALBANY -- The final Holiday Sales Watch report issued by the Retail Council of New York State shows a boost in retail activity this season over last year.

Retailers graded the 2009 holiday sales season a "B-," an improvement over last year's "C-."

Seventy percent of retailers polled by the RCNYS said their week-before-Christmas sales were better than or same as their sales during the same week in 2008; fifty-eight percent said after-Christmas sales were better than or the same as sales for the same time period in 2008.

"It wasn't a year of huge growth," admitted RCNYS president James Sherin, "but it was still a solid improvement over 2008."

With slow pre-Christmas sales, retailers said in the previous Holiday Sales Watch survey they were counting on last-minute shoppers to round out the season. In this survey, retailers said consumers didn't disappoint. 

"Many retailers can reflect positively on Holiday Season 2009 because they had realistic or perhaps low expectations of what consumers would be able to deliver," said Sherin. "As a result, merchants ordered less inventory than prior years and stocked practical, lower-priced merchandise that was attractive to this year's frugal shopper. These strategies appeared to have paid off." 

Hot sellers this season included the following, according to RCNYS:

For Girls: Barbie, Dolls (generic), Disney Hannah Montana, Video Games, Disney Princess, Dora the Explorer, American Girl, Nintendo DS, Nintendo Wii, Zhu Zhu Pets

For Boys: Video Games, Transformers, LEGO, Cars (generic), Nintendo Wii, Trucks (generic), Bakugan, Hot Wheels, Nintendo DS, Fisher-Price Toys

For Adults: Cold weather apparel, books, video games, Blu-ray DVD players, small kitchen appliances, gift cards/certificates, digital cameras, jewelry and accessories, portable navigation devices