Morning Poll: Buying Locally This Holiday Season?

Retail sales are an important component of Arlington County’s economy.

The top 8 retail centers in Arlington, including the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City and Ballston Common Mall, alone house 644 stores. Arlington retailers recorded a total of $3.27 billion worth of taxable sales in 2012.

The holidays are obviously a crucial time for retailers, providing on outsized portion of annual sales and profit. But with retail sales growth sluggish compared to the growth in online sales, and with the large regional malls in Tysons Corner and outlet stores elsewhere continuing to lure shoppers, the holidays could be a struggle for some local stores.

As such, we were wondering, dollar-wise, what percentage of holiday present purchases made this year by Arlington residents were actually made in Arlington stores.