NEW YORK—The free-wheeling holiday shopper of 2021, happy to spend money to relieve some pent-up pandemic demand, has given way to a more practical consumer this year, many small business owners say.
The reason: inflation.
Stephanie Sala felt last year had a YOLO, or “you only live once,” feel to it. People were splurging—spending $250 on a giant stuffed avocado, for example—at her eight Five Little Monkeys toy stores around the Bay Area in California. This year, the purchases are more low-key: Legos, Pokemon and anything mushroom-related are popular toys.
Sala says Five Little Monkeys probably won’t reach the same level of sales as last December but believes “we’ll still be well ahead of 2019.” That’s crucial for her because the last seven days leading up to Christmas account for 10 percent of annual sales….