CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Nancy Chang of Waialae Iki checks out the holiday trimmings at the Iwilei Costco. She says she started her Christmas shopping early so she can get packages sent out before the rush.
It's beginning to look a little like ...
Christmas
The Costco Warehouse stores in the islands already have their Christmas merchandise on display, more than a month before Halloween. And veteran local retailer Hilo Hattie will open a separate Christmas-season store Wednesday in Ala Moana, where it already has significant retail space.
While these early starts by themselves don't make a trend, island retailing experts say there has been a shift in recent years to an earlier start to their biggest season of the year.
And early or not, they expect to do well this holiday season, following on what has already been a fairly good year.
Hawaii retail sales figures were up 11.4 percent in the first half of this year compared to the first half of 2002 according to one measure, the revenue base reported by retailers when they paid their general excise taxes to the state government.
"We used to say we're 'cautiously optimistic.' This year we're just 'optimistic,' " said Carol Pregill, executive director of the trade group Retail Merchants of Hawaii.
There are signs of an earlier season this year, Pregill said. Among the reasons for it is more married women working at jobs outside the home. They have less time to shop are grabbing gift items when they can because they may not have time later, she said.
"It used to be more predictable. I think everybody waited until after Thanksgiving" for the big shopping season to start, she said.
"I think the way things have changed, with the kinds of retailers (changing) and the competition is so intense, and the season is so critical, retailers have moved up the holiday season," she said.
In fact, the sales season starts right after Halloween, or even earlier, in some stores, said retailing consultant Stephany Sofos of SL Sofos Co.
"Now retailers are going to Christmas in September. I've seen some as far back as July," she said. "Traditionally we have slow periods in September," after the back-to-school sales have run their course, and retailers who rely on the Christmas season for some 40 percent of their annual sales are increasingly tempted to start early, Sofos said.
Sofos agreed this year's season looks good. "Traditionally Hawaii residents do spend, because they have so many immediate and hanai relatives. So it's really a big holiday" for retailers, she said.
The major shopping centers haven't entirely bought into the early-start concept. The Hilo Hattie opening next week on its mall level may be the first sign of Christmas at Ala Moana. Executives of the center were not available for comment on when the season will officially begin.
Pearlridge Center is staying with tradition. "We typically run our Christmas season, and gear up for it, right around Thanksgiving," said Marty Lastner, Pearlridge general manager. "We're not going to change that," he said.
CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Rene Correia, foreground, and Jim King browse through the holiday wrapping paper at Costco in Iwilei. Correia says she thinks "Christmas is for men," citing as proof the fact that she has already found Christmas signs bought yesterday by her husband in their garage.
Lastner said the season does look good. "We've been trending up for a long time," he said, partly because Pearlridge does most of its business with local residents and there are more and more of them living in the area, he said.
Commenting on state tax figures that showed statewide total retail spending of $9.35 billion in the first six months of this year, up from $8.39 billion in the first half of last year, Lastner said: "We're feeling good results out here so maybe it's good all over the place."
Hilo Hattie, a 40-year-old business that has been doing well with its Internet sales as well as in-store retailing, said its opening of a 3,800-square-foot seasonal store at Ala Moana next week is part of a strategy to try different store concepts while minimizing the risk.
Called the Kamaaina Collection the store, near Macy's and Shirokiya on the Ala Moana mall level, it is situated at what will be the terminal for the Ala Moana Mall Christmas train, said Len DaSilva, Hilo Hattie chief operating officer.
But it won't be only a Christmas store, he said.
"The seasonal-store concept was to test not only concepts but locations," DaSilva said. "Our first Christmas seasonal store was tested two years ago at the Prince Kuhio Plaza in Hilo and the company has had a special store there each subsequent year."
The Ala Moana store, although it is smaller than the company would like, is in a high-traffic area. "It will open with a strong Christmas element but the core of the merchandise is aloha wear," DaSilva said. "We will have our exclusive Christmas prints for both adults and children," but there will also be other styles. There will be home accessories and food and gift baskets as well, he said.
"Our secondary goal is to get customers to visit our main store in Ala Moana, on the ground level next to McDonald's and Old Navy," DaSilva said.
Asked if it might not be a bit early in the year to open a Christmas store, DaSilva said Hilo Hattie doesn't think so. "We believe it is never too early for the Christmas spirit," he said. "Many retailers actually start their Christmas trim in October" and Hilo Hattie gets requests year-round for Christmas designs, he said.
Costco said an early Christmas start is nothing new for its outlets.
"We generally bring in seasonal merchandise early," said Richard Galanti, chief financial officer at Costco corporate headquarters in Issaquah, Wash. "Typically, you'd find the beginning of Christmas and seasonal goods early in September.
Sales are going well, Galanti said. The shift of Costco's main warehouse store from the Bougainville industrial area in Waipahu to a new, larger location in Iwilei has helped, but all four of Costco's Hawaii locations -- the new Alakawa Street store in Iwilei and the others in Hawaii Kai, Kona and Kahului are doing well -- Galanti said.
