Square Businesses Enjoy Holiday Boom

Retailers around the Square said sales jumped this Thanksgiving, with many reporting that earnings rose more than 10 percent in comparison to last year’s holiday weekend.

Across the country, sales were booming as well. The National Retail Federation reported that 133 million shoppers were out this weekend, spending $22.8 billion—a total that Square businesses selling everything from books to clothing to cosmetics said they shared in.

The Tannery, a Brattle Street apparel shop whose business has been on the rise since Head of the Charles, saw sales climb 25 percent from last Thanksgiving, manager Andrew Hampshire said.

“While guys are buying flatscreen TVs, women are buying boots,” Hampshire said, citing the fur-lined Ugg boots, which go for around $200 a pair, as particularly popular sellers. “Women are fabulous. They’re driving everything.”

Hampshire said that shoppers are making multiple purchases now in preparation for the gift-giving season.

Alpha Omega Jewelers manager Mehtap Alsan said that “business is blooming,” citing a 30 to 40 percent increase in weekend sales this Thanksgiving.

Alsan said that the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks detracted people from traveling over the last few years, but now more tourists have regained confidence. Alsan also said that she has not seen this many tourists in the three years her business has been in the Square.

The American Automobile Association predicted that 37.2 million Americans would travel over the weekend, reversing a downward trend since 36.8 million left their homes for the holiday in 2000.

“People have no pressure shopping when they are traveling,” Alsan said. “At home it’s always rush, rush, rush, rush, rush.”

Some of the smaller Square businesses have also benefited from post-Thanksgiving sprees. The Garage’s Newbury Comics, which earns half its yearly profits in the fourth quarter, saw brisk sales and a 40 percent improvement from last year, its manager said.

The Adidas Originals store on Mass. Ave reported an increase of 10 to 15 percent, while managers at Tower Records, Black Ink, Curious George Goes to Wordsworth, Origins and The Body Shop all said sales were up slightly from last Thanksgiving but that exact figures were unavailable.

The Coop bookstore saw sales go up significantly this weekend, said floor manager Joseph Nathan, though he said he could not release exact figures. Nathan said that sales have improved since late July and that the fall releases of works by popular authors like Philip Roth and Tom Wolfe have driven sales.

“There’s a great selection of books out now for people who want to read and love to read,” Nathan said. “I have great optimism for this business.”

Nathan said that this time last year, people buying The Da Vinci Code provided profits but those readers “weren’t here to stay.”

JFK Street shoe store ALDO, however, saw business drop in comparison to last Thanksgiving. Manager Michelle Benoit said that sales were quiet on Friday, with more business occurring the Sunday through Wednesday before Thanksgiving.

“It’s not our big weekend,” Benoit added, noting that the store relies mostly on student clientele.

RadioShack Sales Associate Alex Boch said that typically their stores earn one third of their November to January profits the Friday after Thanksgiving, but this year that may not be the case.

RadioShack saw a 15 percent decline from last Thanksgiving throughout the local sales district, he said. But the Harvard Square store actually saw a slight improvement of $5,000 more sales Friday in comparison to the day after Thanksgiving in 2003.

“We expected it to be slow, but not this slow,” Boch said of the chain’s overall performance.