Research Topic

This fall, T.J.Maxx is partnering with Erika Christensen and designer Jenn Rogien, who has made headlines for her wardrobe curations for hit TV series such as “Girls” and “Orange Is the New Black,” for a new ad campaign revolving around a woman’s style.

Atlanta - Overall retail spending growth in August 2014 was the strongest in more than a year. According to the First Data SpendTrend report, retail dollar volume growth reached 2.8% in August (compared to 2.6% in July), as back-to-school shopping propelled spending growth in several retail categories. (SpendTrend tracks same-store point-of-sale data by credit, signature debit, PIN debit, EBT, closed-loop prepaid cards and checks from nearly 4 million merchants locations serviced by First Data in the United States.)

Washington, D.C. --  August retail sales – excluding automobiles, gasoline stations and restaurants – increased 0.5% seasonally adjusted month-to-month and 2.7% unadjusted year-over-year, according to the National Retail Federation. When combined with revisions to July, August sales indicate a consistent improvement in consumer confidence and spending.

Overall retail spending growth in August 2014 was the strongest in more than a year, according to the First Data SpendTrend report.

Retail dollar volume growth reached 2.8% in August — compared to 2.6% in July — as back-to-school shopping propelled spending growth in several retail categories.

City of Commerce, Calif. — Net income at 99 Cents Only Stores Inc. slightly increased to $2 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2014 from $1.9 million a year earlier. Net sales rose 6% to $458.2 million from $433.1 million, while same-store sales increased 0.1%.

99 Cents Only cited the short-term impact of several long-term growth initiatives, as well as California’s ongoing drought, as limiting its financial growth during the quarter.

Learn about emerging brands on the cusp of break-out success and formerly solid brands in need of a reset in this exclusive report, More Climbers & Fallers.

A digital follow-up to Chain Store Age’s annual State of the Industry Report from Interbrand Design Forum, the report sheds light on retailers who know how to connect with customers in a transforming marketplace.

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Five Below’s profit more than doubled to $8.3 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2014, from $4.1 million in the same period last year. Its results beat expectations. The chain issued a third-quarter earnings estimate slightly below Wall Street views, while increasing its full-year sales and earnings guidance.

Revenue in the quarter increased 30% to $152.5 million. Same-store sales increased by 3.2%.

New York -- Fitch Ratings downgraded the credit ratings of Sears Holding Corp. from “CCC” to “CC,” citing the “magnitude” of the retailer’s drop in profitability and lack of visibility to turn operations around as a significant concern.

Fitch also cited the company’s cash burn rate, calling it a “significant concern.”

North Palm Beach, Fla. – Despite prevailing expert opinion that mobile payments are popular with modern consumers, this may not actually be the case. A new survey of U.S. consumers conducted by Princeton Research Associates for Creditcards.com shows that only 4% of Americans say they would always use their mobile phone to make a purchase and only 9% said “most of the time.”

New York – Almost all retailers consider Big Data to be important, according to a new survey from Accenture Analytics. When asked how important is Big Data to their organization, 94% of retail executives answered “important,” 58% responded “extremely important,” and 36% responded “important.”