I've owned a retail store for the past 5 1/2 years, and its been a downward spiral since January 2008. but in my opinion, things are definitely getting better!
Just put my best November ever to bed, and while December started a bit slow, I'm getting slammed now!! :-D Average $ per sale is up, AND I'm getting more customers through the door. I know that its still tough for lots of folks, but from what I'm seeing, the economy is definitely turning around.
Hope this gives some people hope for better times.