It's a common complaint from consumers: Just about everything costs more these days.

Those high prices won't be plummeting any time soon. But some moderate relief in the cost of food and clothing could be good new for cash-strapped consumers according to retail industry futurist Doug Stephens.

"Unfortunately, prices in general are not going to go down," Stephens said on Thursday on CTV's Canada AM.

Yet lower food prices will be a bright spot, said Stephens, the president and founder of Retail Prophet Consulting -- a company that counts Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Disney and the Hudson's Bay Company among its past clients.

"Some of our commodities are going down a little in price," said Stephens.

As a result, consumers won't see the same kinds of increases in food prices that were witnessed in 2010 and 2011, where costs jumped between 5 and 10 per cent.

Clothing costs could also improve slightly in 2012.

"The cotton supply is going to be a little bit better, we anticipate," said Stephens.

More competition in Canada's marketplace could also benefit consumers in the year ahead.

"Target is opening 135 stories in Canada in 2012. Hopefully that will bring a little bit of good, downward price pressure, especially in food and clothing," said Stephens.

Target's debut, however, could hurt mid-market department stores such as Sears.

"Sears is having a really tough time. They have for a number of years," said Stephens.

In Dec. of 2011, Sears Holdings Corp. in the U.S. announced plans to close between 100 and 120 Sears and Kmart stores and cut inventory after slow sales during the holidays. The company has more than 4,000 stores in the U.S. and Canada.

Sears Canada laid off 70 employees from its head office in Toronto last month and lost nearly $47 million in the previous quarter.

The company's stock also fell five per cent on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Most of these troubles can be attributed to the erosion of the middle ground in the marketplace.

"We're seeing luxury retailers doing very, very well. We're seeing deep, deep discounters like dollars stores doing very well. What's really suffering is the middle ground," said Stephens.

Sears' challenges, and those experienced by other mid-level retailers, clearly reflect the tightening squeeze on North America's middle class.

As Stephens said, "In general, the average income earner just isn't making a lot more money year on year."

2012's new trends

Looking forward, the marriage of media and technology will continue to grow and impact consumer spending habits.

One trend to note is what Stephens calls a "media mash-up."

"We're seeing lots of static ads, like magazine ads and newspapers ads, carrying these things that we're calling QR codes. They're 2D codes that you can scan with phones. You can get video content. You can go to websites. So the ad really becomes a virtual storefront," said Stephens.

Facebook will also help to shape new consumer habits in 2012.

"If you're a Facebook user, you're hearing of friends reading books or listening to particular songs. We're going to see more and more ability to buy that digital content directly through Facebook right from the app," said Stephens.

"Once you start buying songs, why can't you buy a gym membership? Why can't you buy a vacation? It's just a small jump to non-digital content," he said.

Mobile payment will also become big news, as more consumers adapt to smartphone technologies.

"We're hearing a lot of about mobile payment -- that far off place where all of a sudden we don't need a wallet. We just pull out our phone and we can pay for everything and keep track of our rewards," said Stephens.

Starbucks is one company jumping on this trend.

At the end of 2011, Starbucks rolled out a new app that can be used on mobile devices.

"It basically becomes a virtual payment care on your mobile device," Stephens explained.

The app can be loaded with any credit card. All consumers need do is walk into Starbucks and order what they want.

"When you want to pay, you just turn over your card, they scan it and you have paid," said Stephens.

"I can check rewards. I can see how many gold stars I've earned and how many more I need for a free coffee with the phone."