Cold December Spurs Winter Apparel Sales

In the words of just about every character from "Game of Thrones," winter is coming.

While we here in Philadelphia are dealing with the first hate-my-life cold day of the year today (thanks Polar Vortex), the experts are saying that the cold December could boost retail apparel sales by $350 million.

Promotional products distributors should look to provide their customers jackets to gear up for a cold December.

"It looks like this December will be the coldest in at least four years," Evan Gold, executive vice president of global services at Planalytics, told MarketWatch.

Gold added that most of the apparel sales would come from the East Coast.

"Because we're in a buy now, wear now mentality, customers will spend more money on a coat," Gold said. "Retailers need enough snow to get in that winter mindset, but not so much that keeps people away. It provides a helpful environment."

Another key to the sale is the ability to shop online. When the weather brings heavy snow, shoppers don't want to (and shouldn't) drive in the snow to the store. So, companies should look to make as much of their products available online, and get their products out the door before end-users need to battle the snow and cold too much.