I would say that the first quarter of next year probably has already been doomed by this episode,

Consumers this year just never got enamored with what they saw.

This [first quarter] is probably going to be our strongest calendar quarter of the year. It's all downhill from here, but that's OK.

[They] say that they're going to give their child a mutual fund contribution or some kind of gift through a stock investment.

Gift cards are becoming an easier gift to give. Of course, nobody ever returned cash, either.

Retailers are caught in a 'Catch-22' situation. Their costs, such as transportation costs, are going up and this is not going to change in the short term. Meanwhile, their consumers are going to be extremely deal focused.