With less than a week until Christmas, retailers are hoping to see a cold snap to heat up the sales of winter weather apparel. Much of the country has experienced unseasonably warm temperatures in November and December. Retailers, who based much of their buying plans on last year’s long, cold winter, are experiencing icy sales of sales of cold-weather items like coats, boots, sweaters, and gloves. According to Planalytics, which conducts surveys for the National Retail Federation, retailers lost an estimated $185 million in winter apparel sales during November

“We don’t have up-to-the-moment statistics, but there’s no doubt that sales of those products have had a slow start. But we still have this coming weekend, and even after-Christmas sales,” National Retail Federation Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said.

The good news for shoppers: stores are slashing prices on those items, like coats and boots, hoping to move them off the shelves during this last-minute push for holiday shoppers.

Read more here:

>> New York Times:Retailers Feel the Heat of Lost Winter Clothing Sales

>> Associated Press: Warm Weather Leaves Stores in the Cold