Retailers brace as virus bears down on consumers

WASHINGTON, Nov 22 (AP/UNB) - LaTonya Story is every retailer's worst fear.

With the viral pandemic re-surging through the country and the economy under threat, Story has decided to slash her holiday shopping budget. She'll spend less than $2,000 this season, down from several thousand dollars in 2019. Worried about entering stores, she's buying gifts online and going out only for groceries.

"I want to be conservative," said Story, a 47-year-old Atlanta resident. "I'm not a scientist, but the best precaution is to stay in place."

The acceleration of coronavirus cases is causing an existential crisis for America's retailers and spooking their customers just as the critically important holiday shopping season nears. It's also raising the risk that the economy could slide into a "double-dip" recession this winter as states and cities re-impose restrictions on businesses and consumers stay at home to avoid contracting the disease.

An anxious consumer is a frightening prospect for retailers as well as for the overall economy. Any sustained recovery from the pandemic recession hinges on consumers, whose spending fuels about 70% of economic growth.