Stores are already setting up for the Christmas holiday but one thing you may not see as much this holiday season are discount signs.
A strong economy could actually hurt bargain hunters, San Diego State marketing professor Miro Copic said.
"People are seeing more money in their pocketbook," Copic said. "Real wages are up, more two-income households and fewer people are unemployed."
That's a good sign for retailers who are predicting an increase in sales even higher than the last few years. But that doesn't mean shoppers will see early discounts.
"There are going to be fewer items on sale and the depth of the discounts is not going to be as high," Copic said.
Local
Shoppers won't see the 50 percent to 75 percent discounts they've seen in recent years. There might be 35 percent or 45 percent discounts but that's much less than previous years, he said.
There's also the possibility that government tariffs could also hurt bargain shoppers.
While items in the store now won't be impacted, popular items coming late from overseas could be more expensive, Copic said.
"You might see price increases toward the end of your shopping window and certainly at the beginning of 2019," he said.
As for Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Amazon is still the clear leader in online sales but Copic said there will be more online competition this year coming from stores such as WalMart, Target and Costco.
