This would seem to be an issue between the manufacturer and the consumer, but in reality if something doesn't work people will take it back to the store, so retailers need to take this into account. There are a lot of unique issues that the retail establishment must deal with. Kathy pointed out that nobody has any kind of an idea of how many batteries people will want to buy before January. Also the NFR is just beginning to find out if industries are going to go on the offensive and recommend buying their product. The bottled water association has decided not to take advantage of Y2K to sell more water, not because they don't want the sales, but because of the fear that those big five gallon returnable bottles won't be returned.
Retailers have the added problem of having no space for extra product.
For instance, there is a difference between soft and hard goods. Canned food can be consumed later, but items specifically purchased for a disaster that are not used may be returned. Later in this case is usually the second day after Christmas. This is the December 28th Scenario, as she described it. December 26 is spent with your family eating left-over turkey.