SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 Sports) - The message is simple...the economic health here in Utah is improving and you at home feel more comfortable about spending. That's according to the Zions Bank Consumer Price & Attitude Index along the Wasatch Front. Local Businesses like Hip and Humble in Salt Lake's 9th & 9th area have already seen a boost compared to years past.
"We are really confident," said Sheridan Mordue, co-owner of Hip and Humble. "It was our best week after Thanksgiving and our best Black Friday."
Why such optimism throughout the Beehive State? Well, for starters, unemployment here is 7% versus 9% for the rest of the country. Then there's the face that Utah is seeing job growth and income growth. So we asked Scott Hardy who helped conduct the survey, are we finally out of this economic funk?
"I don't know if we can say we're out of it but we're seeing encouraging trends that lead us to be optimistic," said Hardy, Vice President of the Cicero Group.
The Gateway in downtown Salt Lake is just one of the places considered to be a hot spot for holiday spending. But this year consumers won't be as quick to open up their wallets.
"With the price of gas and food we have to buckle down and get what's important," said one shopper ABC4 spoke to.
"I think we'll end up spending less but I think everybody is feeling the pinch," another consumer told us.
But not everyone will be hesitant when it comes to holiday spending.
"I always spend more than I should.....I need a new car, that's what I'll be after," one shopper told us.
To learn more about the Zions Bank Consumer Attitude and Price Index click
HERE.
