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Tuesday News & Notes

Published May 22, 2012 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: consumer confidence, consumer spending, consumer trends, retail news, retail trends

With 1st quarter earnings season nearly halfway through, it’s becoming quite clear the post-Easter slowdown witnessed in April was far more than just the result of a calendar shift.

The common refrain from retailers this past quarter was a strong start to the year driven by unseasonably warm weather and the early Easter, followed by a significant drop-off post-Easter through the end of April.

Shoppers splurged earlier than usual on spring merchandise, and with a stagnating job market and teetering stock market, have curbed spending on all but necessities.

Gas prices have declined for 7 straight weeks, somewhat easing the burden on household balance sheets, but unfortunately consumer confidence has followed suit.

“The lagged impact of rising food and fuel prices early in 2012 and a slower pace of hiring amid a decelerating economy are the likely culprits behind the near reversal of gains in consumer comfort observed through the first quarter,” said Joseph Brusuelas, a senior economist at Bloomberg LP in New York. “The ability of the household to reassert its place as the primary driver of growth during the current business cycle remains limited due to modest job growth and incomes.”

According to ICSC, chain store sales have decreased for 4 consecutive weeks and 5 out of the past 6 weeks. “Consumers seemed to take a ‘time out’ despite the abnormally warm temperatures throughout the nation and receding gasoline prices,” said Michael Niemira, ICSC’s vice president of research and chief economist.

He noted that Memorial Day may spark a positive end to May, but with a less than impressive turnout for Mother’s Day we are not as optimistic.

Tuesday Retail & Consumer Reading List:

Luxury-Crazy Chinese Fuel Soaring Retail Rents In Hong Kong (Bloomberg)
Online retailer Bonobos moves offline to provide more personal service (PSFK)
E-Commerce in China: How the World’s Biggest Market Buys Online (Mashable)
Macy’s 2.0 Sales Strategy Puts Pedal to the Metal in Digital (Forbes)
Digital Goes Offline: Can Brands Take Back The Store? (Adotas)
J. Crew and the Man Who Dressed America (The Record)
Overall U.S. Retail Real Estate Market Recovery Remains Modest (Jones Lang LaSalle)
How Moosejaw’s marketing madness wins over Gen Y (MarketingDaily)
Infographic: Shopping Cart Abandonment Rate Statistics (Invesp)
Study Finds Giant Food & ShopRite Are Consumers’ Favorite Grocers (Market Force)
Is online shopping better for lowering carbon footprint than going to the store? (FastCoEXIST)
Home Depot vs Lowe’s: The Fight for Head of Household (Denver Post)
Retail Landlords Sigh in Relief as Leasing Activity Gains Momentum (Retail Traffic)
New Study Reveals Freebie Promotions Motivate Sales (iYogi Insights)
Walmart tops list of world’s most valuable retail brands (Retailing Today)

source: Invesp

Retail Sales Barely Budge in April as Early Spring Buying Spree Fades

Published May 15, 2012 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: consumer confidence, consumer spending, retail sales, retail trends

Retail sales in the U.S. barely rose in April, as the boost from an unseasonably warm start to the year faded and the early spring buying spree seems to have pulled sales forward.

The U.S. Department of Commerce reported that Advance Estimates of U.S. Retail and Food Services sales for April increased just 0.1% over the prior month to a seasonally adjusted $408.0 Billion, slightly less than consensus estimates for a 0.2% gain, while sales increased 6.4% compared to the year-ago period. Year-over-year, this was the 30th straight gain after 14 consecutive months of declines.

Total sales excluding Autos were up 5.9% in April from the year-ago period and rose 0.1% from the prior month, while total sales less Autos and Gas Stations showed a 6.0% year-on-year increase and also rose 0.1% month-on-month following a 0.8% gain in March.

Though 9 of 13 categories showed increases over the prior month, strength was muted – gainers were led by: Nonstore Retailers (+11.0% YoY, +1.1 MoM), Miscellaneous Store Retailers (+8.5% YoY, +0.8% MoM), Furniture & Home Furnishing Stores (+7.6% YoY, +0.7% MoM), Auto & Parts Dealers (+8.4% YoY, +0.5% MoM) and Health & Personal Care Stores (+4.4% YoY, +0.6% MoM).

Online sales continue to significantly outperform overall retail – comScore reported that e-commerce sales jumped 17% in the first quarter to $44.3 billion (govt. figures will be reported Thursday morning). This was the tenth straight quarter of positive year-over-year growth and sixth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth.

Unseasonably warm weather throughout the winter and early spring, as well as Easter falling 2 weeks earlier this year than last seems to have led to much earlier seasonal buying Continue reading ‘Retail Sales Barely Budge in April as Early Spring Buying Spree Fades’

Mother’s Day 2012 Spending by the Numbers

Published May 8, 2012 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: consumer spending, holiday spending, mother's day spending, retail sales, retail trends

Gas Prices No Match When It Comes To Mom (NRF)
The National Retail Federation’s 2012 Mother’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey projects total Mother’s Day sales will rise 13.8% this year to $18.56 billion, trailing only the Christmas holidays and back-to-school hauls, with the average consumer spending $152.52 or 8.4% more than 2011.

“Despite grappling with high gas prices, Americans will look for sentimental and unique ways to shower mom with affection this year,” said NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. “As one of the most important holidays of the year, consumers can expect to see a wide range of promotions from mom’s favorite retailers leading up to the big day, including savings on apparel and electronics and even special Mother’s Day menu options at restaurants.”

“While still very mindful of their finances, consumers will open their wallets a little more this year to ensure Mother’s Day is extra special for the women in their lives” said BIGinsight Executive Vice President Phil Rist. “Many will use the opportunity to comparison shop and research products to save a few bucks, utilizing their mobile and tablet devices at home and in stores as they look for gifts and other ways to celebrate.”

Key dates and tips to target the online Mother’s Day shopper in 2012 (Shop.org)
25.6% of consumers will purchase Mother’s Day gifts online this year, up from 21.5% last year, and Shop.org notes that they spend a lot more than their offline counterparts:

plan to spend a combined net average of $233.67 for Mother’s Day, or 53% more than the average for all adults
an impressive 44.5% of online Mother’s Day shoppers expect to spend an average of $116 on jewelry alone, compared to 31% of all adults averaging $97
3 out of 5 will splurge on a special outing such as dinner or brunch, at an average of $56.75, compared to 51% of all adults spending an average of just $27.79
three-quarters will spend an average of $32 on flowers, vs just 27% of all shoppers planning on spending an average of $27
about twice as many online shoppers (15.7%) as all adults (8.2%) expect to also shop in brick-and-mortar specialty stores

Continue reading ‘Mother’s Day 2012 Spending by the Numbers’

April Showers Rain on Same-Store Sales

Published May 3, 2012 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: consumer spending, retail sales, retail trends, same-store sales

Most retailers saw a significant spending slowdown in April compared to prior months, as unseasonably warm weather and an earlier Easter likely pulled sales of spring merchandise into February and March.

Total net sales for the 21 chains we track increased 2.2% from a year ago to $29.43 billion in April, while same-store sales rose just 0.8% on top of an 8.8% gain last year – this was the 32nd straight monthly rise after 12 consecutive months of declines. For the spring break (combined March-April) period, total sales increased 4.2% to $65.15 billion and same-store sales rose 2.8% compared to a 5.4% gain in 2010.

Excluding drug stores, as Walgreen continues to experience steep declines due to the loss of the Express Scripts network, total sales increased 3.8% and same-store sales rose 2.5% from the year-ago period. For the combined March-April period, total sales increased 6.5% and same-store sales rose 4.9% compared to a 6.5% gain in 2010.

Easter fell 16 days earlier this year than last, temperatures across much of the country were extraordinarily warm in February and March, and most chains were up against very tough comparisons from last April.

There were only a handful of standouts for the month, as only 12 out of 21 chains saw comp gains and just 47% of chains beat analyst estimates:

Leading the gains, as usual, were off-price stores TJX (+6%) and Ross Stores (+7%), both of which saw comps rise more than 8% in the 2-month period and again raised earning estimates. TJX CEO Carol Meyrowitz said “Comp sales were once again driven by significant increases in customer traffic, which indicates that our values and offerings of current fashions and great brands are attracting and resonating with consumer,”

Limited Brands (+6%), Zumiez (+10.1%), and Nordstrom (+7.1%), were the other big winners during the month. Though Target (+1.1%) missed estimates in April, overall performance for the first quarter was robust – CEO Gregg Steinhafel noted “We’re very pleased with Target’s strongest quarterly comparable-store sales performance in more than 6 years, which, as we’ve previously indicated, received an early-season boost from the combination of warm weather and an earlier Easter,”

There was a significant drop-off in foot traffic after Easter, and because of the earlier Easter and Mother’s Day falling later this year than last, a lull in activity that seemed to affect the majority of retailers.

However, the combined March-April period (excluding Walgreen) continued to show positive momentum, and higher gas prices have yet to have a significant impact. We are seeing a lot more full-priced selling of apparel and seasonal merchandise in the first quarter compared to heavy promotional activity over the holiday season, which we expect will help bolster first quarter margins.

Retail Sales in U.S. Increased More Than Forecast in March

Published April 16, 2012 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: consumer confidence, consumer spending, retail sales, retail trends

Retail sales in the U.S. rose by more than expected in March, driven by an improving job market that’s boosting incomes, unseasonably warm weather across much of the country and Easter falling more than two weeks earlier this year.

The U.S. Department of Commerce reported that Advance Estimates of U.S. Retail and Food Services sales for March increased 0.8% over the prior month to a seasonally adjusted $411.1 Billion, significantly better than consensus estimates for a 0.3% gain, while sales increased 6.5% compared to the year-ago period.

Total sales excluding Autos were up 6.1% in March from the year-ago period and rose 0.8% from the prior month, while total sales less Autos and Gas Stations showed a 5.8% year-on-year increase and rose 0.7% month-on-month following a 0.5% gain in February.

Strength was broad-based, as 11 of 13 categories saw growth over February, led by: Building Materials & Supplies Dealers (+14.1% YoY, +3.0% MoM), Auto & Parts Dealers (+8.3% YoY, +0.9 MoM), Gas Stations (+7.6% YoY, +1.1% MoM), Furniture & Home Furnishing Stores (+6.6% YoY, +1.1% MoM), and Clothing & Accessories Stores (+7.9% YoY, +0.9% MoM).

Click here for results by line of business.

Sales at Electronics & Appliance Stores (-3.1% YoY / +1.0% MoM) again showed improvement over the prior month, but the 3.1% year-on-year decline was the worst in more than 2 years Continue reading ‘Retail Sales in U.S. Increased More Than Forecast in March’