Among the slew of analysts looking back to the 2008 holiday season, comScore has estimated that online sales from November 1 through December 23 were actually down 3% from the year before. Apparel was one of the bright spots, with an online increase of 4%, compared to a 19-21% decrease in the category overall sales. Other hot online performers included Sports & Fitness (up 21%) and Video Gaming (+14%).

Another interesting note: online spending by HHI grew only among the over-$100k crowd, and there by a mere 7%. Compare with Hitwise data which shows a 3.7% lift among households earning $100-149k, but notes traffic drop of 12% from households over $150k.

Seems like an opportunity where high-quality mid-ticket merchants — those working somewhere between Walmart and Prada — had the greatest opportunity to reconnect with their core customers.