Retailers Can't Keep Winter Goods On Shelves

By Mana Rabiee

The snow storm over the weekend may have hurt many area retailers but those who sold winter goods just couldn't keep up with demand.

At ACE Hardware on Wisconsin Avenue in Northwest D.C., snow related items are leaving the store, sometimes even before they get it. "Hi Ma'am, we're not sure about sleds right now. We haven't got to the back of the truck," says Brian Fuller, who worked here throughout the weekend. "Our whole snow section was pretty much wiped out by Friday at closing."

Friday was the store's biggest sales day ever since they opened at this location. They sold out of salt, sleds, shovels and ice scrapers.

But overall sales were down for the weekend more than 50 percent. That's because the store has reduced hours and the items people did want to buy, like sleds and salt, were sold out.

Other retailers that sell winter apparel report a similar trend."There were not people in Christmas shopping per se," says Eban Weber, store manager at City Sports in D.C. "It was really just about getting the necessities that were kinda coming because of the blizzard."

Weber says items like boots sold out before the snow even hit but overall weekend sales were still down by more than 20 percent.