Milan Sales to Begin on Feast of St Ambrose
Decision taken by retail trade observatory. Confescercenti retailers’ association slams “error”
Milan Sales to Begin on Feast of St Ambrose
Decision taken by retail trade observatory. Confescercenti retailers’ association slams “error”
MILAN – The seventh of December will be more than just the first night of the La Scala opera season. This year, the feast of St Ambrose will also be the first day of the sales, or rather the “promotions”, as traders and the regional authority are at pains to point out. In a nutshell, shops will be free to slash prices a month before the start of the main sales season, which starts immediately after 6 January holiday.
EXPERIMENTAL CRISIS MEASURE – The new initiative stems from a year-long experiment that was approved by the regional council last spring. But in September, Confesercenti re-opened the debate: “Our members feel penalised by the early promotions”, was the gist of the association’s message. On Thursday, Lombardy regional councillor for commerce, Margherita Peroni, called a meeting of the observatory on retail trade to clear the air and discuss a possible step back. Joining the councillor at the table were representatives from Lombardy’s trade associations – Unioncamere, Anci, Uncem, Confcommercio, Uniascom Varese, Confesercenti, Federdistribuzione and Legacoop – the ADUSBEF and ADICONSUM consumer associations and the federation union. Ms Peroni summed up after the meeting: “The opinion expressed by the observatory is to continue and conclude the experiment, bearing in mind that the council has the last word. Sharing strategies is of fundamental importance”.
FOR AND AGAINST – The only voice raised in opposition to bringing forward the promotion period remained that of Confesercenti Lombardia. Confesercenti’s regional president Pier Giorgio Piccioli said: “I really hope that my forecast is wrong but this operation could mean that many small traders already in difficulty will go under. Bringing forward the discounts might cancel out trading in November. And the January sales would also suffer”. The Confcommercio traders association takes a different view. “At this time, it would be suicide for clothing to stand still. In any case other sectors, such as computers and mobile phones, have promotions in place with a vengeance”, said Federmoda president Renato Borghi. Mr Borghi added: “The figures from the June trial tell us that the sales went better in Emilia Romagna, Trentino and Lombardy, the regions where early promotions got the go-ahead”.
LARGE-SCALE DISTRIBUTION – While small traders are split over the crisis promotions issue, the big chains have no doubts. Giovanni Cobolli Gigli, president of Federdistribuzione, was unequivocal: “Obviously, our companies will be taking advantage of this opportunity to cut the prices of certain products. Seventy-two per cent did so in June. On this occasion, with more time to get ready, I’m certain that percentage will rise”. Consumer associations were equally enthusiastic. ADICONSUM’s Angela Alberti commented: “An experiment was sanctioned and it is only serious to bring it to a conclusion. A signal of consistency to consumers”.
5 ottobre 2012 | 12:14
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