Australian retailers are calling on the government to help the industry after sales remained flat in July, albeit increasing from the year-ago period.
“As tough times continue, we are seeing the so-called ‘lipstick effect’ play out—where people are having to do more with less. There are trade-offs in this budget-conscious environment and in July we saw people replacing dining out with food from their local supermarket, allowing some spending on personal luxuries,” said Paul Zahra, CEO of the Australian Retailer Association.
