Data & Analytics

The retail industry lost jobs in July.   Retail industry employment declined slightly in July, decreasing 1,700 jobs from June, according to the National Retail Federation. On a three-month average, retail jobs have decreased by 4,200 jobs as calculated by NRF. (The numbers exclude automobile dealers, gasoline stations and restaurants.) On a positive note, the economy overall saw gains of 209,000 jobs in July, exceeding growth expectations for the month.  

Costco Wholesale Corp. turned in a winning performance in July, fueled by strong traffic trends.   The company reported that its net sales in July rose 8.8% to $9.41 billion, compared to $8.65 billion during the similar period last year. Total company same-store sales rose 6.2%, with a 6.0% increase in the U.S. Excluding the impacts from changes in gasoline prices and foreign exchange, total same-store sales rose 5.3%, and 5.5% in the U.S.   

A furniture e-retailer is putting its augmented reality-based app into more shoppers’ hands.   Wayfair’s AR application, WayfairView, has been integrated into its mobile shopping app on the newly released ASUS ZenFone AR. The smartphone, which launched on Thursday, is equipped with Google’s Tango AR platform.  

L Brands, The Cato Corp., and The Buckle reported decreases in same-store sales, although one still managed to sound an upbeat note about its second quarter.   

One of the retail tech start-ups from the inaugural class of the Target + Techstars retail accelerator program is expanding.  

PGA Tour Superstore is betting on Las Vegas.   The retailer has signed a lease to open its first store in the Las Vegas market, a 30,000-sq.-ft. space in downtown Summerlin.   The location, expected to open later this year, is the company's 31st store. It will be staffed with PGA teaching professionals, have five state-of-the-art swing simulators, multiple practice hitting bays, an expansive putting green and a junior putting green along with an in-house club-making and repair facility.

The ax has fallen at Bed, Bath & Beyond as part of the realignment of its .store management structure.    The retailer said it has initiated in approximately half of its U.S. Bed Bath & Beyond stores and about a dozen of its buybuy Baby stores a limited realignment of its store management organization that will result in the elimination of about 880 department and assistant store manager positions.   

Amazon’s investments in the shoe business are paying off.   While 2017 is not even close to over, it is shaping up to being a strong year for shoes on Amazon. The company has already experienced 18% growth year-over-year during the first two quarters, alone. For 2016, Amazon had a total of 35% year-over-year growth, according to a study by One Click Retail.   

City Furniture sales associates are moving away from the cashwrap, and completing transactions directly on the show floor.  

Party City topped earnings estimates for its second quarter and said it is on track to deliver its full year total revenue and earnings guidance.    The party supplies retailer and wholesaler reported net income of $25.0 million in the quarter, compared to $22.5 million in the year-ago period. Earnings, adjusted for non-recurring costs, came to 28 cents per share, topping Wall Street expectations