Consumer Attitudes & Behavior

Washington, D.C. -- The average American celebrating the Easter holiday in 2014 will spend an average of $137.46 on apparel, food, candy, gifts and more. According to the National Retail Federation’s Easter Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics, this is slightly less than the $145.13 spent last year.

Average spending per person is forecast to decline this Easter despite pent up demand from a long cold winter, according to new consumer research from the National Retail Federation.

Montreal – Dollarama Inc. reported an increase in sales, net earnings and same-store sales for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2014, compared to the same periods in the prior year. During the fourth quarter, net earnings rose 8% to $83 million from $77.1 million.

Meanwhile, sales rose 4% to $582.3 million from $561.9 million and same-store sales grew 1.1%. The addition of 89 net new stores, increases in same-store sales and average transaction size helped drive overall sales growth.

L’Oréal Paris and the Melanoma Research Alliance, a private funder of melanoma research, have announced the launch of the “It’s THAT Worth It” campaign, a public health call-to-action that urges women of all skin tones to prevent melanoma by using sunscreen and to help save lives by supporting melanoma research for a cure.

Santa Barbara, Calif. – Shopper activity rebounded in March 2014 from the prior month, but traffic and engagement lagged compared to March 2013. In-store retail analytics provider Euclid, released its monthly retail benchmarks report to analyze shopper activity and behavior during the month of March, measuring data from tens of millions of domestic shopping sessions.

Atlanta – Havertys reported a 2.5% drop in sales during the first quarter of fiscal 2014 compared to the same period in the prior year, falling to $181.4 million from $186.1 million. Same-store sales declined 0.9%.

Clarence H. Smith, chairman, president and CEO of Havertys, said severe winter weather did not negatively impact all of Havertys locations.

Marshalls wanted to see how confident women are and asked 1,000 women if they have ever held themselves back due to a lack of confidence.

The retailer found that three out of four women (75%) have said no to an activity or opportunity due to lack of confidence. Marshalls enlisted the help of celebrity stylist Elizabeth Stewart and body language expert Dr. Lillian Glass to provide confidence boosting tips to help women say yes more often “in fashion and in life.”

One of the most fascinating developments over the last several years in our industry has been the explosion of new and different types of dining concepts. And it’s not only the restaurants chains evolving and emerging, but also about the way that dining preferences are changing.