Research Topic

Boca Raton, Fla. -- Office Depot reported Tuesday that it lost $64.3 million in the second quarter, widened from a $29.3 million loss in the same period last year.

Weakened sales in North America and Europe, along with a $23.9 million impairment charge and other restructuring charges, contributed to the weakened performance.

Revenue dropped 7% to $2.51 billion, compared with $2.71 in the year-ago period and missing analysts’ expected $2.6 billion in revenue. Sales in North America fell 8%, and same-store sales dropped 4%.

Austin, Texas -- A survey released Tuesday by coupon site RetailMeNot.com found that nearly 80% of parents spend up to $500 per child for back-to-school shopping.

Additionally, the survey – which was conducted with Ipsos Public Affairs – found that the majority of parents get the jump on the school year by starting their shopping in July and August (54%) versus after the school year begins.

A significant number of parents, 29%, find the back-to-school shopping experience to be either annoying or stressful.

Bergen, N.J. -- Vitamin Shoppe Inc. reported Tuesday that net income for the second quarter surged 38.8% to $16.6 million, compared with $12 million in the year-ago period and marking the third straight quarter of profit increases.

Revenue rose 13.4% to $245 million, beating Wall Street’s expected $241.8 million in revenue.

The company said it is on track to open 52 stores in fiscal 2012.

Total U.S. shopper traffic in retail stores and malls for July 2012

This July, Americans celebrated their independence with barbeques, fireworks and shopping. With Independence Day, July 4, falling on a Wednesday, more consumers than usual took the entire week off. This extra vacation time provided more free time to shop compared to last year’s Fourth of July holiday. July’s retail foot traffic increased 8.1% compared to the previous month and increased 4.6% compared to the same period last year.

New York -- Total operating income of all shopping centers on a square-foot basis in the second quarter of 2012 rose 4.9% from the same quarter last year, while operating expenses rose by a larger 5.8%, according to a new quarterly shopping-center benchmarking report from The National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries (NCREIF) and the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC).

London -- New shopping center development in Europe is expected to increase by a quarter in 2012 to meet retailer demand for modern, high quality retail space, according to the latest research by global property adviser CBRE.

Turkey is the most active market, accounting for one-third of new space delivered in the first half of the year. This is some way ahead of Germany, with Italy and Poland just behind.

Deerfield, Ill. -- Walgreen Co. said that its same-store sales fell 7% in July as its split with Express Scripts continued to hurt its top line. (The two companies last month reached an agreement to resume doing business, but that doesn't start until Sept. 15.)

The company's pharmacy same-store sales were down 9.7%, while front end sales fell 2.4%. The performance missed analyst expectations.
 

Chelmsford, Mass. -- The Kronos Retail Labor Index edged down one-tenth to 4.2% in July, reflecting declines in both hires and applications. (The index is defined as the ratio of hires to applications within a given month, expressed as a percentage. A level of 3.0 means that for every 100 applications received, three hires occurred.)