This year, retailers expect to hire more help for the holidays

Although Washington retailers continue to post record sales declines, they are expected to hire more seasonal workers this holiday season than last — a ray of hope from an industry crushed by the recession, and good news for job seekers like recent college graduate Haley Wentworth.

Since earning her bachelor's degree in psychology from Evergreen State College in Olympia almost a year ago, Wentworth has been unable to find full-time work doing what she is trained in — working with children and families.

Instead, Wentworth has been a nanny, gardener, house painter and data-entry clerk.

With seasonal hiring picking up, she landed a 30-hour-a-week job, at the Fireworks gift boutique in Westlake Center, that is steady and well-paying enough to support her while she builds her résumé with volunteer or other unpaid work in her field.

"If I have this (job), then I can afford to do that," Wentworth said.

Washington retailers are expected to hire about 10,000 seasonal workers this year, fewer than the 15,000 they typically hire but far better than last season's paltry 6,000 holiday jobs, according to Washington chief economist Arun Raha.

"Last year was one of the worst we've seen," he said. "Part of it had to do with the credit crunch that started in mid-September, and we saw massive job losses in the fourth quarter last year."

The economy was in free-fall through the holidays, which were further hampered by bad weather, he said.

This year, Christmas arrives after a year of continued job losses and other economic declines. The state recently reported a record 14 percent drop in taxable retail sales for the second quarter.

Still, there are glimmers of hope — slowing job losses, easing credit, stronger September sales than some expected — that make retailers bold enough to increase their holiday hiring.

"We're better off than last year, but that's not saying much," Raha said.

Despite the pickup in holiday jobs, Washington will continue to lose so many jobs — particularly in construction and manufacturing — that it will post a net job loss in the fourth quarter, he predicted. He expects hiring to improve in the first quarter.

"Businesses don't hire until they're sure demand has come back," he said.

Seattle-based Sur La Table appears confident about sales. It plans to nearly double its staff this holiday season, adding almost 2,000 workers at its 76 retail stores and its Brownsburg, Ind., distribution center. The company also has about 50 regular positions open, some at its Georgetown headquarters.

Rose Abbott, a chef who owns her own catering business in Indiana, said she applied for a couple dozen holiday jobs before Sur La Table hired her as a customer-service representative in Brownsburg.

"I need to replace the income I'm not going to get from parties this year," she said. "And I still have my weekends open to do small parties on the side."

Ann-Marie Archer, who owns the recruiting consulting firm Archer & Associates in Redmond, said she recommends that people who are unemployed either volunteer or find seasonal work "to get them networking and getting up every day and staying positive."

Unemployment is so high that many retailers have scaled back their recruitment efforts for holiday and regular hiring.

Fred Meyer unexpectedly did not have to hold a job fair for its second Lynnwood store, which opened last month, after getting plenty of applications from an online posting, said spokeswoman Melinda Merrill.

Kerry O'Neil, who manages Fireworks' store at Westlake Center, prefers not to advertise her job openings, which pay about $9 an hour.

"I find it's better to not post, because then they're people who actually want to work here as opposed to people seeing it on Craigslist," she said.

It also saves her sifting through piles of résumés, like the fellow at one local retailer where Wentworth applied before Fireworks hired her.

"At one of the stores I went back to see, he said, 'Who are you?' and pulled out a huge stack of résumés and started flipping through them," she recalled. "He kept them in a box under the counter."

— Melissa Allison

Tidbits

Nike executive Ed Thomas made the business case for sustainability during a gathering of organic-textiles professionals this week in downtown Seattle. Pointing to mounds of discarded cloth scraps featured in a large photo, Thomas told an audience of about 240, "If you're in consumer products, you own a piece of this." The waste, he added, represents lost profits and "my bonus at the end of the year."

Expect to hear more from Nike on its sustainability efforts, said Thomas, whose title is a long one — global apparel senior materials director for Nike Considered. The Beaverton, Ore.-based company had been focused on sustainability "internally, but now we're focused on it externally," he said. The gathering was organized by Organic Exchange, a nonprofit organization that promotes sustainable textiles. — AM

The Cascade Harvest Coalition is encouraging people to eat local for Thanksgiving by taking pledges at www.eatlocalforthanksgiving.org. It's holding a drawing for prizes — including an organic, heritage turkey and cooking classes — for people who pledge by noon, Nov. 20. Last year, more than 2,500 people took the nonprofit's pledge. So far this year, a little more than 500 have signed up. — MA

The Sweet Spot, which removes unwanted body hair, is moving to 3507 Evanston Ave. N. in Fremont next month, where there'll be room for additional services, such as makeup application. Its space now, off North 36th Street, is less than half the size of the new, 1,600-square-foot location. — AM

Sindelman Imports in Mount Vernon recently began importing an Italian brand of limoncello not previously available in the United States, called Maurizio Russo Limoncello. "My aim is to offer a sensory experience that will not only be unforgettable, but to make people feel as if they had traveled back to the Amalfi Coast without ever leaving their seats," said owner Jonathan Sindelman.

Some state liquor stores are carrying it, and there will be a tasting at Osteria La Spiga on Capitol Hill on Monday, Nov. 9, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Sindelman expects to import more than a dozen new products to Washington next year, including others from the Maurizio Russo line. The new limoncello arrives in Seattle a year after three local entrepreneurs began importing Finamoré, a limoncello made in Taurasi, Italy. — MA

Retail Report appears Fridays. Amy Martinez covers goods, services and online retail. She can be reached at 206-464-2923 or amartinez@seattletimes.com. Melissa Allison covers the food and beverage industry. She can be reached at 206-464-3312 or mallison@seattletimes.com.