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Budgets/Spending/Market Size

  • Retail sales up in April

    Retail sales increased in April, led by online, consumer electronics stores and home improvement outlets.     Retail sales in April increased 0.3% seasonally adjusted over March and 3% unadjusted year-over-year, the National Retail Federation said on Friday. The number, which exclude automobiles, gasoline stations and restaurants, was below expectations.  

  • Office Depot Q1 profit surges

    Office Depot’s profit in the first quarter more than doubled as its reduced store count led to lower operational costs.   The company's net income increased to $116 million, or 22 cents per share, in the quarter ended April 1, from $46 million, or 8 cents per share, in the year-ago period. Its results beat analysts’ expectations.  

  • Amazon making inroads in sales of ‘e-commerce immune’ items

    Shoppers are increasingly turning to Amazon for purchasing bulky goods that traditionally haven’t sold all that well online.   

  • NRF: Retail jobs on the increase in April

    The retail industry had some good news on the job front in April.  

  • Retail outpaces other industries in…

    Job losses are piling up in the retail industry amid ongoing store closings.    The retail industry experienced 11,669 job cuts in April, the highest total among all industries, bringing the year-to-date total to 50,133, according to a report released Thursday from global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas. That is up 36% from the 36,977 retail-sector job cuts announced in the first four months of 2016.   

  • Consumer confidence slips in April

    April's consumer confidence metric didn't live up to the new benchmark established in March, when consumer confidence reached a 16-year high.   This month, the Index declined to 120.3 from 124.9 in March.  

  • Study: Amazon Prime doubles in size in two years

    The number of Amazon Prime members are on the rise.   An estimated 60% of Amazon customers are Prime members, a group that is comprised of roughly 80 million members in the United States, according to research from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP). The study is based on responses from 500 U.S. shoppers who made a purchase at Amazon.com between January and March.  

  • NRF: Mother’s Day spending to reach record-high

    Whether treating mom to jewelry or a special outing at her favorite restaurant, consumers plan to spend more than ever on Mother’s Day.   Specifically, Mother’s Day shoppers are expected to spend an average of $186.39 for the holiday, up from last year’s $172.22, according to the National Retail Federation’s annual survey, which tapped 7,406 consumers about their Mother’s Day plans. The study was conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics.  

  • Study: U.S. companies still waiting on an innovation ROI

    Global companies agree that innovation is critical to survival but not enough projects are successfully driving growth and increasing revenue.   Specifically, two-thirds (66%) of global organizations said innovation is crucial to their longevity, but only 28% are seeing returns on their investments (ROI), according to “Innovation Matters,” a report from PA Consulting Group. The report tapped 821 senior executives across C-level, senior VP, board and director level positions.  

  • Retailers launch new push against border tax

    The retail industry is ramping up its efforts against House Republicans’ proposed border-tax proposal.      The National Retail Federation has launched the next phase of a television and digital ad campaign against the tax, which is included in the House Republican tax reform plan.   The campaign features three small retailers who tell their own stories and convey their fears that the BAT would put them out of business.   
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