This year, there’s no such thing as ‘too early’ to start holiday shopping

It’s Oct. 6 — you may still be debating your Halloween costume…

… but it might be time to shift your attention to holiday shopping. While US retailers typically maintain ~1.5 months of inventory on hand, that number has dropped to 1.1, well below historical averages, per Bloomberg.

In addition to the examples in the cartoon above:

• H&M sales slowed notably in September due to delivery delays
• Nike lowered its sales forecast after closing 80% of its factories in Vietnam
• Bed Bath & Beyond revenue fell 26% YoY due to shipping issues

At the very least, it’s probably time to start putting together a list of presents for your loved ones lest you come up empty-handed in December.