Consumer Analytics

Framingham, Mass. -- The TJX Cos. reported Wednesday a profit of $604.8 million for the quarter ended Feb. 2, compared with $475.3 million in the year-ago period. Despite the strong showing, TJX forecast a slowed growth pace for the new fiscal year and issued a profit forecast below analysts’ expectations. And joining many other retailers, the company announced that beginning with the fiscal 2014 second quarter, it will no longer report monthly sales.

Waban, Mass. -- Survey results released Wednesday by Temkin Group revealed that Publix and Trader Joe’s ranked the highest among 246 companies in terms of customer experience.

The 2013 Temkin Experience Ratings, which polled 10,000 U.S. consumers, were dominated by grocery chains and food purveyors. After Public and Trader Joe’s was Aldi, and rounding out the top 12 were Chick-fil-A, Amazon.com, Sam's Club, H.E.B., Dunkin' Donuts, Save-a-Lot, Sonic Drive-In, Little Caeser's and Ace Hardware.

New York -- A new report by Experian Marketing Services finds that several key retail trends will impact how marketers shape their messages in 2013.

According to the 2013 Digital Marketer Report, consumers today are multi-device and multichannel shoppers, forcing digital marketers to adapt and evolve their message to reach consumers across channels and all along the path to purchase.  

By Sandy Skrovan, U.S. research director, Planet Retail

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — According to the American Customer Satisfaction Index's (ACSI) annual E-Commerce Report, produced in partnership with customer experience analytics firm ForeSee, customer satisfaction with e-commerce websites continues to rise, gaining 1.2% to 81.1 on the ACSI's 100-point scale. 

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Customer satisfaction with retailers is on the rise, according to a report released by the American Customer Satisfaction Index. In fact, it’s at an all time high, up 0.7% to 76.6 in 2012 on ACSI’s 100-point scale. And once again, Publix is on top, outperforming all other retailers (physical and pure online players) with a score of 86.

NEW YORK — L'Oréal Paris is relaunching LorealParisUSA.com, which will include a first-to-market content production and syndication partnership with AOL, the company said Tuesday.

The company described the site as the first major one to be designed for all devices, making it easy to navigate for users on desktop computers, tablets and mobile phones.

New York -- Consumer confidence rebounded in February, reversing three straight months of declines, according to The Conference Board, a private research group. The Conference Board’s closely-watched Consumer Confidence Index stands at 69.6, up from 58.4 in January. Economists had expected 60.5, according to research firm FactSet.

It was the highest reading since November’s 71.5 metric.  

Cincinnati -- Macy's earned a better-than-expected $730 million in the fourth quarter, compared with $745 million a year earlier when it booked one-time gains from the sale of store leases. The department store retailer forecast an annual profit for the recently completed year that surpassed analysts’ estimates and provided new guidance for continued growth and progress for 2013.

New York -- With an overall branded basket 4% less expensive than Target’s, Walmart assumes the strongest overall lead in Kantar Retail’s semi-annual pricing study since the study began in 2009.
   
While strategic price discounts on key items continue to be a cornerstone of Target’s price competitiveness, rather than everyday low prices, Target’s overall basket has not been lower than Walmart’s since the January 2011 iteration of this study.