Bay State Struggles While Other Regions Thrive

As many of you know, Black Friday is known as the kickoff to the holiday shopping season and while retailers in many regions in the nation thrived, Bay State retailers weren’t so lucky. According to an article in the Boston Herald, “Nationally, shoppers spent $10.6 billion at the malls on the day after Thanksgiving, 0.5 percent more than last year. The West led the way with a 4.7 percent retail sales jump compared to 2008, followed by the Midwest where sales increased by 1.3 percent and the South, where sales rose by 0.6 percent.” However, the Herald goes on to report that here in the Bay State, “The Retailers Association of Massachusetts is predicting another 3 percent drop in retail sales during the holiday season this year.”

Could it be because of the massive increase to the state’s sales tax earlier this year? When are Governor Patrick and the tax-happy Democrats on Beacon Hill going to realize that their policies are hurting Massachusetts residents and business in Massachusetts, not helping?