Is Apparel Doomed This Year?

Msnbc.com interviews some of our favorite analysts about the state of apparel in today’s retail environment, and it’s not pretty. Apparently, consumers just aren’t buying clothes because they NEED to buy food and gas, which are both rising in cost and taking precedence over the newest Abercrombie T-shirt.A quote by C. Britt Beemer, an analyst at America’s Research Group, is telling. “I’ve done research for 29 years, and what I’m seeing today I can’t compare to anything I’ve seen before,” he said.Ouch. One analyst blames the problem on overexpansion by stores, while another points out that all retail sectors (except supermarkets) are taking a big hit. A prediction floated in the article is that things won’t get better for another 13 months, when next year’s tax returns come in.doomed for now?