Budgets/Spending/Market Size

Washington, D.C. -- The U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia of Friday overturned a lower court's decision in July that favored the merchants and was a setback for banks. The National Retail Federation expressed disappointment with the decision, which will keep the Federal Reserve’s cap on debit card swipe fees at 21 cents rather than reducing it to a lower level.

Waban, Mass. -- Chick-fil-A and Sonic Drive-In deliver the best customer experience in the fast food industry, according to the 2014 Temkin Experience Ratings, an annual ranking of companies based on a study of 10,000 U.S. consumers.

San Francisco -- Guess Inc. saw fourth-quarter profits slide 4% on softer sales in the three-month period.

Net income fell to $69.6 million from $72.5 million, and revenue for the quarter ended Feb. 1 dipped to $768.4 million from $815.1 million. Revenue results still beat Wall Street expectations of $758 million.

 

New York -- The Deloitte Consumer Spending Index remained flat in February 2014, showing only a marginal change. The Index tracks consumer cash flow as an indicator of future consumer spending.

The Index, which comprises four components, tax burden, initial unemployment claims, real wages and real home prices, ticked down slightly to 3.9 from 4.0 last month. Highlights of the Index include:

Tax Burden: The tax rate stayed at 11.8%, consistent with recent months.

Hong Kong – Chinese e-commerce platform provider Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is reportedly planning a U.S. initial public offering (IPO). According to Bloomberg, Alibaba has received approval from Hong Kong regulators for its proposed governance structure.

Ottawa, Canada - Target dropped prices on its monitored assortment by more than 20% during the days leading up to its confirmation of the data breach that compromised the security of 70 million customers’ personal information during the pre-holiday shopping season. According to data from 360pi analyzing approximately 830 products across eight categories, including TVs, tablets, digital cameras and more, Target dropped its prices by 18% between Dec. 14 and Dec. 17.

Kearney, Neb. –- The impact of an extra week in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012 helped drive down net income and sales at The Buckle during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013. On a year-over-year basis, net income dropped 3% to $59.4 million from $61.3 million, while net sales declined 6% to $339 million from $360.6 million. Same-store sales for the quarter decreased 2.8%.

Washington, D.C. – Lingering bad weather in much of the country did not keep consumers from shopping during February 2014. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), February 2014 retail sales, which exclude automobiles, gas stations and restaurants, increased 0.2% adjusted month-to-month and 2.3% unadjusted year-over-year.

Chicago – Morale is the biggest challenge facing retailers trying to fill and maintain their staffs. According to a new survey of 168 retail staffing managers and HR executives conducted by Harris Poll for CareerBuilder and WorkInRetail.com, 37% of respondents cited lifting employee morale as a challenge.

The following are the top 10 staffing challenges faced by retail hiring managers:

1. Lifting employee morale – 37%
2. Retaining top talent – 36%
3. Maintaining productivity levels – 29%

Goodlettsville, Tenn. -- Dollar General on Thursday reported a 1.5% rise in fourth-quarter profits, below analysts’ estimates, as the retailer felt the impact of harsh winter weather, along with increased competition and low consumer confidence. The company also said it plans to open approximately 700 new stores in 2014.

The retailer earned $322.2 million in the quarter ended Jan. 31, compared with $317.4 million a year earlier.