Consumer Attitudes & Behavior

A traditional, low-tech customer service feature can help prompt shoppers to follow the path to purchase.   According to a new study from technology services company Mindtree, “Mindtree Shopper Survey 2016,” good old-fashioned human sales associates have a big impact on consumers moving from thinking about a purchase to actually making one.  

Despite their reputation as a generation dedicated to the greater good, millennial consumers are in some ways more narrowly focused than their Gen X elders.   According to a new study of more than 7,000 global consumers conducted online in April age 18-55 conducted by sales and marketing firm Daymon Worldwide, 35% of both millennial and Gen X consumers prefer buying sustainable products.  

The first-ever LinkedIn “Top Attractors” list of the most desirable companies to work is out, and several firms engaged in retail were included.  

A Swedish retail giant that excels in fast-fashion is also a leader when it comes to breaking the glass ceiling. But a U.S. merchant is not that far behind.   

Father’s Day is Sunday, June 18, and retailers and dads alike will have reason to smile, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC).    American adults who plan to consume this holiday will do so in a big way, spending an average of $169.60 at predominantly at physical retailers, according to ICSC’s most recent consumer survey.    Here are eight specific findings:  

If it seems like more if your inventory is disappearing, you’re probably not imagining things.   According to the 2016 National Retail Federation (NRF) Retail Security Study, conducted in collaboration with the University of Florida, retailers’ inventory shrink averaged 1.38% of retail sales, or $45.2 billion in 2015, up by 3% from $44 billion the previous year.  

Internet shopping is extremely popular, but how much room for further growth is there?   According to a new study of more than 3,300 U.S. consumers age 15 and up from The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), the overall move to online shopping is expected to slow considerably during the next three years.  

Solid. That’s how many industry analysts described retail sales in May.   Driven partly by rising gasoline prices, sales increased 0.5% in May, the Commerce Department said Tuesday, above the 0.3% gain economists expected. Excluding automobiles, gasoline stations and restaurants, retail sales rose 0.2% unadjusted over April, according to the National Retail Federation.