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Retail leaders say auto’s woes are stealing the spotlight
At the National Retail Federation convention in New York Tuesday, some industry leaders noted that while there are about 25 million retail jobs in the United States — 10 times the number of auto industry jobs — they believe the financial crisis in Detroit has overshadowed the job loss and turmoil retailers are facing as consumer confidence spirals.
“Retailers lost 579,000 jobs last year,” Myron E. “Mike” Ullman III, chairman and CEO of JCPenney Co., told an audience of about 1,000 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. “That’s more than twice the jobs lost in the auto industry. I think as an industry, we need to do a better job of articulating that to our officials.”
Chimed in Peter J. Solomon, founder and chairman of the financial firm Solomon Co.: “The reason the auto industry gets listened to is not the number of people, it’s the number of votes. I doubt that there’s one elected official where retail employment is the No. 1 item on their agenda.”
While they noted that tax cuts and another stimulus package would provide a good, immediate boost to the economy (therefore, ideally for retailers, boosting consumer confidence), both men indicated a louder voice for the industry was needed in Washington.
Do you think the auto industry’s woes are stealing the thunder from the rest of the retail industry’s plight? What’s more important? That Detroit get saved or that consumer confidence be spurred again?
LIZ FARMER, Business Writer
