Research Topic

Alexandria, Va. -- The ranks of the nation’s convenience stores continue to grow, increasing to 152,794 stores at year end, up nearly 1% from the year prior, according to the 2015 NACS/Nielsen Convenience Industry Store Count. And 2015 is expected to be another busy year: Pennsylvania-based Sheetz plans to open 30 locations in 2015. The chain, which recently opened its 500th location, has said it now sees the potential to double in size.

Indianapolis -- Simon Property Group has put out feelers to acquire The Macerich Company, confirmed by a letter from Simon chairman and CEO David Simon to Arthur Coppola, chairman and CEO of Macerich.  

Macerich has not responded to the offer, although the letter from Simon references prior discussions that include a proposal by Simon to acquire all of the outstanding stock of Macerich for $91.00 per share in cash and Simon shares. The total value of the proposed transaction is approximately $22.4 billion.
 

Franklin, Tenn. - Worldwide mobile POS shipments grew by 77.4% in 2014 and this growth rate is maintaining its pace in 2015. According to new research from IHL Group, specialty stores still dominate the use of mobile POS worldwide, receiving 58% of total shipments in 2014.

Walter J. Salmon, the distinguished Harvard Business School professor who influenced generations of retailers, has died at the age of 84.

Salmon, long one of the world’s leading experts on retailing, retail distribution, and marketing, who for more than 40 years influenced thousands of students, executives and other academics, was the school’s Stanley Roth Sr. Professor of Retailing Emeritus.

Chicago – A majority (82%) of shoppers look for coupons before grocery shopping, according to the Market Track 2015 Shopper Insight Survey. And 61% of grocery shoppers look for both print and digital coupons.

In contrast, only 33% look for print coupons. Other findings include that nearly 80% of shoppers will switch where they shop if prices are lower elsewhere, and 75% will switch the brand they buy if a different brand is on sale.

Alexandria, Va. - Rising gas prices are taking a toll on consumer optimism about the economy. According to survey results released by the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS), consumer optimism fell from 54% to 44%, the largest decrease in optimism since August 2014,

There has been a lot of discussion in the last several years about the strength of the grocery sector. I think it’s clear that a big reason behind that success has been the evolution of different formats and the explosive growth of a new generation of grocery concepts that represent a significant departure from the traditional grocery model.

Philadelphia – Net income fell at Urban Outfitters Inc. during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014, but still beat Wall Street expectations.

Urban Outfitters reported net income of $80.3 million, down 9% from $88.68 million the same quarter a year earlier.  Lower initial merchandise markups, increased markdowns and higher selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses all contributed to the decline.