If you’re in retail, you’re well into the holiday shopping season. The National Retail Federation (NRF) defines the traditional holiday season as Nov. 1 through Dec. 31 (although many have been in the holiday shopping mode for weeks now, as noted below). The NRF just released its 2022 Holiday Forecast. The predictions are for healthy holiday spending this season, despite inflation and consumer’s concern over the economy. 

 What to expect this season: 

To help handle all this holiday shopping, the NRF reports retailers will hire between 450,000 and 600,000 seasonal workers. That compares with 669,800 seasonal hires in 2021.  

As License Global reported last month, one factor that continues to trend upward is the shift to consumers starting their holiday shopping well ahead of Black Friday, the traditional start to the holiday shopping season on the day after Thanksgiving. 

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“The holiday shopping season kicked off earlier this year – a growing trend in recent years – as shoppers are concerned about inflation and availability of products,” says Jack Kleinhenz, chief economist, NRF. “Retailers are responding to that demand, as we saw several major scheduled buying events in October. While this may result in some sales being pulled forward, we expect to see continued deals and promotions throughout the remaining months.”