The early read on retail sales for holiday season is that they were up by more than 5 percent – perhaps the best season for retailers in three years. MasterCard reported that sales of women’s apparel and restaurant meals showed the most increase. Behind the numbers are some shifts in how young people are shopping. Zoey Washington, fashion editor and CEO of the company LITTLEbird, a fashion consulting service for teens and tweens, talks about youth fashion and whether major retailers are responding quickly enough to shifting fashion trends and global influences.
The New York Times reported on "unhealthy malls" -- malls like the one in Owings Mills, MD., that lack upscale stores to draw visitors. Kevin Litten of the Baltimore Business Journal followed up on the story, reporting that redevelopment plans for the mall are still on long-term hold.
