Is the Election Keeping You From Shopping?

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In case people needed to blame Hillary Clinton for something else, retailers are blaming her silly little election for a lack of sales.

According to a handful of apparel and accessory companies, Americans are so preoccupied with the election, they can’t find time or reasons to buy their products. “The preoccupation with this election is keeping them at home, glued to their TVs and at their desktops,” said Len Riggio, the founder and chief executive officer of Barnes & Noble Inc. This election is “unprecedented in terms of the fear, anger and frustration being experienced by the public.”

Yes, but what about retail therapy? Every time we hear Donald Trump say something disparaging about women, we need to comfort ourselves (after punching our Trump pillow).

Many retailers are saying when things are so up in the air, consumers curb their spending. “There’s a presidential election, which is unique this year, and I think has some very unique characteristics that could be affecting the mindset of Middle America consumers until we get through this,” said Signet Jewelers CEO Mark Light.

The election “has an impact on the customer, particularly what we’re talking about – it being as intense and negatively toned as it has been. It’s probably only going to get worse. That just leaves people concerned about what’s going on,” predicts Richard Ausick, president of retail for Caleres Inc., which operates Famous Footwear and Dr. Scholl’s.

It kind of makes sense, but it sounds a little like an excuse to us. According to Bloomberg, president of researcher Retail Metrics Ken Perkins feels this connection had some validity four years ago because the backdrop of the campaign was the “fiscal cliff that was due to usher in large tax increases and government spending cuts.”

“They are reaching,” Perkins said. “I don’t think it’s affecting moms as they go out and do their weekly shopping. If it’s something you do on a regular basis, you’re going to stop doing it because you’re worried about which candidate is going to win?” He goes on to point out that it hasn’t affected Amazon’s sales, which is probably why retailers like Gap are considering turning to the e-commerce website to revive business.

Then there’s the fact that The Conference Board found that consumer confidence is the highest its been in nine years. So … it seems, in this case, the shoe doesn’t fit.