Mass Merchant

Fourth quarter sales at CVS Health surged 11% to $41.1 billion, enabling the operator of nearly 10,000 stores to surpass a significant annual sales milestone.

The company opened 53 new retail stores and acquired 1,672 pharmacies from Target to end the year with 9,655 retail stores, including pharmacies in Target stores, and annual sales of $153.3 billion, an increase of 10%.

Old Navy, the division that has been performing the best for Gap Inc. for years, suffered a serious sales slump in the fourth quarter.

For the fourth quarter ended Jan. 30, Gap Inc.’s net sales were $4.39 billion compared with $4.71 billion for the fourth quarter last year. Same-store sales at Gap Inc. were down 7% versus positive 2% last year. Same-store sales by global brand for the fourth quarter were as follows:

• Gap Global: negative 3% versus negative 6% last year

Tractor Supply Company continues its rapid expansion, with the grand opening of its 1,500th store, on Feb. 13, in Odessa, Texas.

The retailer opened a total of 114 stores in 2015, and expects to open between 115 and 120 locations in 2016. Tractor Supply stores are located primarily in towns outlying major metropolitan markets and in rural communities.
  

A new study of the retail habits of Generations Y and Z shows that the different age groups differ when it comes to using computers for online purchases versus shopping at brick-and-mortar stores.

A new GfK survey revelaled that Baby Boomers have been slower to adopt the smartphone as a shopping device. But when it comes to making purchases with a desktop or laptop computer, Boomers registered similar levels to Generation Y (40% and 43% respectively), while Gen Z came in at just 32%.

Sally Beauty Holdings observed a major milestone recently with the opening of its 5,000th location, but the $3.8 billion Texas-based retailer has even bigger ambitions for more stores and new services as it vies for market share with mass and specialty players.

Sally Beauty Holdings observed a major milestone recently with the opening of its 5,000th location, but the $3.8 billion Texas-based retailer has even bigger ambitions for more stores and new services as it vies for market share with mass and specialty players.
 

Target is rolling Caroline’s Cart out to all of its stores nationwide beginning March 19, the retailer recently announced. The vast majority of Target locations, with the exception of smaller format stores where there are no full-size carts, will have at least one Caroline’s Cart, and many will have more, depending on their guests’ needs, Target said.

A new study of the retail habits of Generations Y and Z shows that the different age groups differ when it comes to using computers for online purchases versus shopping at brick-and-mortar stores.

A new GfK survey revelaled that Baby Boomers have been slower to adopt the smartphone as a shopping device. But when it comes to making purchases with a desktop or laptop computer, Boomers registered similar levels to Generation Y (40% and 43% respectively), while Gen Z came in at just 32%.