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NRF: More shoppers turning to holiday gift cards
Eight-in-10 (80.6%) shoppers will purchase gift cards this holiday season, according to the National Retail Federation’s Gift Card Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics.
Holiday shoppers will spend an average of $163.16 on gift cards, up 4.0% over the $156.86 they spent last year and the highest amount in the survey’s 11-year history. Total spending on gift cards will reach $29.8 billion.
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Loblaw stays positive in third quarter
Facing an increasingly competitive retail landscape, Canadian retailer Loblaw Cos. posted a slight lift in retail sales but, due to incremental margin investment in the back half of the year, lowered its earnings growth expectations for 2013.
However, company executives are optimistic as the company remains focused on investing in what it refers to as the “customer proposition” and looks forward to its acquisition of Shoppers Drug Mart.