Window dressing

Posted by Masakim on December 30, 2003

In Reply to: Window dressing posted by Fred on December 30, 2003

: : I was surprized this wasn't listed.

: The following remarks about 'window dressing' are found in Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:

: Properly, the display of goods in a shop window for the purpose of attracting
: custumers. Figuratively, a specious display presenting oneself or one's
: case in a favourable light.

window-dressing noun
1 (commerce) the art of arranging goods in a shop window to attract customers: "Good window-dressing has a definite effect on sales."
2 (finance) making a business seem more profitable or efficient than it is: "Window-dressing is an unfair way of attracting customers."
From _Oxford Dictionary of English for Learners of English_
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Ralph Acampora, technical analyst at Prudential Securities Inc., said he was "pleasantly surprised" that the market held up earlier in the day despite the pressure from weak overseas markets, especially Japan. "There's also the pressure from portfolio managers to unload unwanted stocks at the end of the quarter. Others call it window-dressing, I call it window-undressing," he said. (Frank Sakdalan, "Stocks end narrowly mixed," UPI, June 26, 1992)