I work in the retail sector, for a company that has typically done pretty well in tough times. I’m a knowledge worker, and while I’m not non-expendable the company would get a pretty big hit of brain-drain if I left. I’ve worked out a niche for myself and could happily churn along for years to come.
This is all to say that I’ve been feeling pretty secure in my job. That is until I looked at the chart above (courtesy of Calculated Risk via Kevin Drum). Now I’m starting to think that the retail sector is feeling uncomfortably like the RMS Titanic…and that chart is just the tip of the iceberg. On November 28, Black Friday, we might get a taste of the rest of the iceberg. It doesn’t matter that the origin of the term “black Friday” has nothing to do with retailers seeing their ledgers go into the black on that day. Black Friday has come to be a key indicator of health in the retail sector. And this year it could be the date that a lot of retailers start going under.
Now would be a good time to start rearranging deck chairs. Or seeing if my resume floats.