Budgets/Spending/Market Size

San Francisco -- Americans modestly increased their spending in April, with growth across most major purchase categories, according to Visa’s Retail Spending Monitor (RSM), a quarterly report that tracks retail spending patterns based on real-time purchase data.  Retail spending in April was up 4.5% from the prior year, excluding automobile and gasoline purchases.

Pittsburgh - Revenue from shoppers on smartphones rose 73% over the last year, according to a new report from Branding Brand's Mobile Commerce Index released Wednesday. In April 2015, smartphone revenue accounted for 13% of total online revenue, which represented a 63% year-over-year increase.
 

London -- Retailers worldwide lose a staggering $1.75 trillion annually due to the cost of overstocks, out-of-stocks and needless returns, according to new research from retail analyst firm IHL Group, commissioned by OrderDynamics.

Sam’s Club is celebrating National Small Business Week in a very big way.

The retailer is launching the Small Business Economic Mobility initiative (SBEM), a five-year investment in small business growth through increased access to capital and borrower education, with grants totaling $13.6 million to eight national nonprofits.

Shopper sentiment surged in the first quarter of 2015 amid optimism over the labor market, job stability, personal finances and gas prices, according to a new survey.

Lakeland, Fla. – Publix Super Markets Inc. satisfied the public in the first quarter of fiscal 2015. The retailer’s net income jumped 11% to $548.9 million from $493.7 million in the same period a year earlier.

Sales were $8.3 billion, a 7% increase from $7.8 billion. Same-store sales increased 5.3%.

Publix stock is not publicly traded and is made available for sale only to current Publix associates and members of its board of directors.

Pittsburgh – GNC Holdings Inc. demonstrated some weakness during the first quarter of fiscal 2015 with shrinking profit and revenue. Net income dropped 9% to $63.27 million from $69.9 million a year earlier, driven by rising selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses.

Net revenue fell slightly to $670.25 million from $674.46 million. Same-store sales decreased 4.1% in domestic company-owned stores (including GNC.com sales). In domestic franchise locations, same-store sales decreased 1.5%.

New York - The U.S. retail and consumer sector experienced a strong first quarter in 2015 for merger & acquisition (M&A) activity, which was driven by seven megadeals (deals with a value of more than $1 billion). According to PwC's U.S. retail and consumer deals insights report, 39 deals were announced for the quarter (with values more than $50 million), up 11% from fourth quarter 2014, but down 9% from first quarter 2014.