Research Topic

New York -- Consumer confidence declined more than expected in December, reaching a four-month low as Americans grew concerned about the possibility of higher taxes next year. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary consumer sentiment index decreased to 74.5 this month from 82.7 in November. Economists had projected a preliminary reading of 82 for December.

Online holiday sales continue to set new sales records, according to digital measurement firm comScore, and Walmart is presumably sharing in that growth given its site typically ranks second only to Amazon in terms of traffic.

Mississsauga, Ontario -- Walmart Canada on Friday opened its 200th supercenter, in Edmonton, Alberta. Today's grand opening marks a major milestone for Walmart Canada. The company opened its first supercentres in Ontario in 2006. Today, Walmart Canada has supercentres in six provinces and 373 stores nationwide serving more than eight million customers each week.

Total U.S. Shopper Traffic in Retail Stores and Malls for November 2012

Shopper traffic in November increased as Black Friday weekend sales promotions — and the Veterans Day holiday earlier in the month — drew shoppers into retail stores.

As a result, the month saw an 18 percent increase in retail foot traffic compared to October. November 2012 continued a trend of year-over-year improvements with a 6 percent increase in retail foot traffic when compared to the same month last year.

New York -- Chain Store Age will hold a webinar on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2 p.m. ET (11 a.m. PT) that will examine email marketing trends for Black Friday 2012 and how marketers used email to promote store shopping and events during the holiday weekend.

The webinar, sponsored by Bronto, will also cover such topics as promotional trends and the influence of mobile and social. Find out what you will need to do early in next year’s holiday season to ensure success.

Add Sherwin-Williams to the list of retailers celebrating store expansion milestones this year.

Dollar General opened its 10,000th location earlier in the year, followed by the 5,000th AutoZone store and more recently Walgreens opened its 8,000th store. Now, Sherwin-Williams has opened its 3,500 stores in Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. The 4,000-sq.-ft. store is the 70th retail location the company has opened this year and its 147th location in California.

New York -- Although consumers are defecting in growing numbers, the majority say they could have been retained, according to survey results released Wednesday by Accenture.

According to the Accenture Global Consumer Survey, in 2012 one-in-five consumers switched companies they buy from -- including retailers, wireless phone and Internet service -- marking a 5% increase in switching over 2011 levels. However, the survey also found that 85% of consumers say the companies could have done something differently to prevent them from switching.  

Reston, Va. -- Online holiday spending reached $21.4 billion for first 32 days of the November-December shopping season, up 14% year-over-year, according to comScore.

The most recent week saw three individual days eclipse $1 billion in spending, led by Cyber Monday, which became the heaviest online spending day on record at $1.46 billion. However, growth rates softened considerably in the wake of Cyber Monday and through the weekend.