2009 was tough for Whatcom County retailers, but 2010 may be better

"The numbers are in, and they prove what people already knew: Many Whatcom County retailers took a shellacking in 2009.

Overall retail sales in Whatcom County totaled $2.86 billion last year, the lowest total since 2005. Retail trade, which focuses on items sold in stores, totaled $1.347 billion, also the lowest annual total in five years. In that time, Whatcom County has added an estimated 12,300 people, and the inflation rate has gone up 9.73 percent."