Staff shortages limiting hours at several stores at Cherry Hill Mall

A spokesperson for the Cherry Hill Mall confirms that while the mall has maintained normal operating hours, many retailers are limiting store hours because of staffing challenges.

CHERRY HILL, N.J. - The Cherry Hill Mall is packed on a Friday night as we inch closer to the holiday season. But, as the labor shortage looms, will these stores be able to keep up with rising consumer demand?

Credible.com personal finance expert, Dan Roccato, says, "It’s going to be a little more challenging this year for consumers and retailers."

Roccato tells FOX 29 News that the labor shortage is hitting retail stores hard.

"Many of them are actually curtailing operations, closing early," says Roccato.

A spokesperson for the Cherry Hill Mall confirms that while the mall has maintained normal operating hours, many retailers are limiting store hours because of staffing challenges. The local H&M store has several job openings posted on its website. Nordstrom has "Hiring Now!" signs posted on its doors. Shoppers say they’ve picked up on the issue.

Deanna Rapanotti, of Maple Shade, N.J., says she noticed that some retailers are opening later and closing earlier despite mall hours.

"I’ve noticed that when I go [to the mall] in the morning, they’re not open yet at all and I’ll have to wait for them to open."

Julia Damato, of Philadelphia, says she works for an online retail giant that’s severely short-staffed and the timing couldn’t be worse.

"I just think it’s crazy. I don’t understand how there is such a demand for work and, yet, we can’t find people to work," says Damato, who tells us that the company she works for has increased pay and issued bonuses to entice people to take jobs.

FOX 29 reporter Jennifer Joyce asked Damato, "What are you predicting to see over the next couple of months with the holidays coming?"

"I don’t know. I think lots of inflation with pricing because of the labor shortage," Damato replies.

Dan Roccato says more than 50% of shoppers will order gifts online this year, which is easier, but still risky with potential delivery delays. If you’re shopping in stores, Roccato says to expect service to be slower, curbside pickup to be popular, and all of our retail issues to linger a bit longer.

"The bottom line is that we are four million workers short of where we were in March 2020," explains Roccato.