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Shopping with a social conscience
Retailers and manufacturers targeting Gen X and Y shoppers this holiday season should introduce more transparency into their product labels and identify fair trade, conflict-free and environmentally friendly practices.
Results of a new survey by KPMG LLP reveal that nearly 70% of consumers younger than age 30 consider social issues such as sustainability, human rights and fair trade before making a purchase. This outpaces the fewer than 50% of consumers overall who feel the same way.
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Michaels third-quarter net income soars
At Michaels, a higher gross profit, partially driven by improved merchandise margin, helped to increase its net income for the third quarter ended Nov. 2.
The company’s net income during the quarter soared 66%, rising to $58 million from $35 million in the prior-year quarter. Net sales grew 10%, to $1.1 billion from $1.01 billion. Meanwhile, same-store sales increased 7.9%, driven by a 3.9% increase in transactions and a 3.8% increase in the company's average ticket in addition to a 20 basis point positive impact from deferred custom framing revenue.
