Research Topic

Chicago -- Year-over-year retail sales rose a solid 4% for the 2010 holiday shopping season (November/December), according to ShopperTrak’s National Retail Sales Estimate.

Conversely, total U.S. foot traffic fell slightly below expectations as consumers continued the pattern retailers saw throughout 2010 of fewer mall and individual store visits with a larger spend. ShopperTrak’s revised holiday forecast called for a 1.8% traffic increase.

NEW YORK — Front-of-pack labels may not sway customers from purchasing certain items in stores.

Conducting a study among more than 1,000 shoppers on their opinion of such labels and changes in purchase intent among 25 major brands with and without FOP labeling, HealthFocus International found that 43% of shoppers said that it’s unlikely that FOP labeling will impact their food choices, but some purchase intent scores changed by more than 25%.

Zappos.com took top honors in the sixth annual NRF Foundation/American Express Customers' Choice Survey, whose results were released at the National Retail Federation's Annual Convention and Expo in New York City. The survey, conducted by BIGresearch, is designed to gauge consumer attitudes toward retailers' customer service and provide a list of the retailer that offer the best customer service (as judged by consumers).

The Top 10 retailers in the ranking were:

More than one-third of the world’s 250 largest retailers suffered a decline in sales in fiscal 2009 (encompasses June 2009 through June 2010), according to the Global Powers of Retailing 2011 report, whose results were revealed at the National Retail Federation’s Annual Convention & Expo in New York City. The annual report, from Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, identifies the largest 250 retailers around the world, provides an outlook for the global economy and an analysis of market capitalization in the retail industry.

New York City -- A retail industry expert presented research Monday at the National Retail Federation convention in New York City that showed shoppers will continue to spend more this year, spurred by a slowly improving job market and an uptick in income.

However, Ira Kalish, director of global economics for Deloitte, added that enough shoppers are still struggling with their finances that any increase will be modest.

Chicago -- Year-over-year retail sales rose a solid 4% for the 2010 holiday shopping season (November/December), according to ShopperTrak’s National Retail Sales Estimate.

Conversely, total U.S. foot traffic fell slightly below expectations as consumers continued the pattern retailers saw throughout 2010 of fewer mall and individual store visits with a larger spend. ShopperTrak’s revised holiday forecast called for a 1.8% traffic increase.

LONDON — Image-conscious women don't "dress their age" until they reach 70 years old, according to new research carried out by the retailer Debenhams, a department store group that has a strong presence in such categories as women's clothing, shoes, children's wear and beauty.

Trends in Target’s credit business continue to improve and delinquency rates in the portfolio are now at their lowest level in several years. Accounts 60 days past due in December represented 4.2% of the receivables portfolio, compared with 4.6% in November, and hit their lowest level since April 2008. The same was true of the 90-day delinquency rate where accounts 90 days past due in December accounted for 3.1% of the portfolio, compared with 3.3% in November, and hit their lowest level since July 2008.

FORT WORTH, Texas - Pier 1 Imports' same-store sales rose 10.3% in December, helped in part by more customers and higher average receipts. The company lifted its fourth quarter guidance.

Pier I used fewer promotions and clearance prices during the month than it did last year, said president and CEO Alex Smith in a statement.

NEW YORK - After coming off a strong November, U.S. retailers found their momentum largely waned in December, with sales impacted by a still-cautious consumer, early discounting and a blizzard that crippled the Northeast in the days immediately after Christmas. But while many chains missed Wall Street’s heightened expectations for December, the retail industry still turned in its strongest holiday performance since 2006.