Article: Best Buy, other retailers having nightmares of a blue Christmas; Marketers revise budgets, emphasize value amid low profits, confidence.(News)(Best Buy Company Inc.)

Byline: NATALIE ZMUDA

Alarm bells, not sleigh bells, are sounding at retailers across the country.

As Thanksgiving approaches, what has long looked to be simply a dismal holiday is morphing into something far worse: a bloodbath that could sink full-year earnings and have repercussions well into 2009. Last week alone, Circuit City filed for bankruptcy; Best Buy warned of dire holiday sales; and Macy's, Kohl's, JCPenney and Nordstrom posted sharply lower third-quarter profits. On Nov. 14, Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers showed consumer confidence at historically low levels.

All of this has left retailers to recalibrate ad ...

Related newspaper, magazine, and journal articles:

 
 
Newsweek Harper's Magazine The Washington Post Chicago Tribune Crain's Chicago Business PRNewswire Pediatric News The Nation Advertising Age The Economist (US) A FREE trial gives you access to over 80 million articles! Access over 6,500 publications with a FREE trial!