Consumer Analytics

Atlanta -- Hurricane Sandy impacted spending in the Northeast, according to First Data’s most recent SpendTrend report, which analyzed date for the full month of October 2012 compared with October 2011. SpendTrend tracks same-store consumer spending by credit, signature debit, PIN debit, EBT, closed-loop prepaid cards and checks at U.S. merchant locations.

New York -- Confidence among consumers hit a five-year high in November, boding well for retailers as they head into the holiday season.

The index of consumer sentiment from Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan rose to 84.9 in November from 82.6, topping economists' expectations for a reading of 83.

By Dr. Trevor Davis, [email protected]

Minneapolis -- Target Corp. announced a partnership with CNET – a top website for consumer electronics and tech news – to provide guests with CNET Editors’ Picks for Target, in time for the holiday season. The collaboration is part of a larger, ongoing partnership between Target and CNET.

Seattle -- Starbucks Coffee Co. on Thursday started will accepting Square’s mobile payment application, Square Wallet, in approximately 7,000 U.S. Starbucks stores.

The new application, which allows customers to pay at Starbucks and explore nearby businesses, browse menu information, store hours and transaction history on their phone, is in addition to Starbucks own mobile payment applications on iOS and Android.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what the media thinks is the “next big thing” in our industry. It seems like everywhere I look, there’s another article about new mobile shopping initiatives and retail-related smartphone apps.

Total U.S. shopper traffic in retail stores and malls for October 2012

Columbus Day and Halloween have historically brought more shoppers to stores in October. This year, however, the month saw a 4.1% decrease in retail foot traffic compared with September. October 2012 did manage to narrowly continue a trend of year-over-year improvements by posting a 1.4% increase in retail foot traffic when compared to the same month last year.

New York -- Hurricane Sandy is being held responsible for reducing U.S. retail sales in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast region by about $4 billion last week, according to MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse.

According to the report, the region, which accounts for about 24% of retail sales nationwide, typically generates $18.7 billion in sales for that particular week ended Saturday, the Associated Press reported. But revenue came in at about $15 billion. (The figures exclude auto sales.)