Sabrina Escobar

Barron’s

If you are sick of hearing about the “new normal,” we have good news: Welcome to the old normal. According to retail CEOs, industry analysts, and other insiders, the 2023 holiday is shaping up to look a lot like the pre-Covid years, with sales set to slow from the eye-popping growth of the pandemic-era holiday. There are still holiday dollars to be captured, experts say, but the bounty is unlikely to be spread around the way it has been for the past few years. Competition for shoppers will be stiffer, and some sectors are better positioned to excel.