Calgarians plan to hit the malls in more subdued manner this Christmas

With a shadow hanging over Alberta's economy, it appears many Calgarians are taking a more conservative approach to holiday shopping this year.

"A lot of people have been hearing a lot of bad news about prospects in the energy sector and this oil price differential," said Todd Hirsch, chief economist withATBFinancial.

"And my fear is that it might weigh down a little bit on consumer optimism and sentiment this year."

According to Hirsch, while some people are doing fine, others are either out of work or worried that could happen. Andwhen you combine that stress withwaning optimism, it could all add up to a less extravagantholiday season.

"That reverberates through Calgarians just through the psyche and I think it has eroded a little bit of that consumer confidence," he said.

While consumer spending has jumped by as much as eight per cent in recent years, Hirsch expects despite population growth overall spending to remain flat or inch up slightly but still remain below average increases of two to three per cent this year.

'It's just not a free for all'

Some shoppers already know they'll be spending less for the holidays.

Ash Ogden works in the oil industry and, while he is still employed, describes his job security as "precarious."

"I look over my shoulders every day," said Ogdenwho has five kids and is slashing his Christmas giftbudget by 50 per cent this year.

"It's just not a free for all like it has been the past few years. We look at our spending, we look at what we're spending for our cost of living and then what we have left over for Christmas gifts and we're just being a bit more cautious this year."

Diane Shearer says her job is safe but with her husband working in the oil and gas sector, she too is reining in her holiday spending.

"Just feeling slightly that it's not a good year to be overly opulent in spending patternsso spending about $400 less," said Shearer, who is also scaling back on her food purchases.

Shearer is simplifying the types of giftsshe gives and, with so much uncertainty in the economy, she's planning to give more to charities this year as well.

'It's actually quite subdued'

Small business confidence also appears to be taking a hit.

"Compared to everywhere else in the country, here you see that level of frustration and angst ... showing strong," said Amber Ruddy, Alberta director for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB).

According to Ruddy, confidence is down in the retail and hospitality sectors.

"It's actually quite subdued when we would typically see that kind of optimism going into the holiday season," she said.

The federation, which regularly surveys its members, recently found21 per cent of Alberta respondents are looking to reduce full-time staff.

And, at a time when seasonal workers are often hired to help with the holiday rush, only 10 per cent are looking to add staff.

"In a normal ... cycle, you would see those numbers flipped. And I think we are experiencing some less than ideal optimism heading into the season," said Ruddy.

She's encouragingAlbertansto think about where they're spending money and consider shopping local in an effort to help ease the pain for small businesses.

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