Data & Analytics

Retailers who release monthly sales next Thursday will offer fresh insight and hard numbers on back-to-school shoppers’ early season spending behavior and that’s a good thing because so far opinions offered by forecasters are all over the place.

Back in early July, Customer Growth Partners said seasonal sales would grow by 6.2% to $467 billion, the most since 2006, despite economic headwinds.

American consumers may not like inflation, but retailers are enjoying the favorable impact rising prices have on their same-store sales calculations. It was evident last month when retailers reported healthy comp increases and more of the same could be in store for July as it appears retailers are effectively passing through increased prices to shoppers.

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid’s same-store sales increased by 1.9% in July, the retail pharmacy chain said Thursday.

During the four-week period ended July 23, comp sales jumped 3.1% on the front end and 1.4% in the pharmacy, including a 151 basis point reduction resulting from introduction of new generic drugs. Prescription counts decreased by 0.4%. Total sales during the four-week period were about $1.92 billion, a 1.6% increase over July 2010.

Amazon.com generates about three times the number of unique visitors each month that Walmart.com does, according to online measurement firm comScore, and all that traffic is allowing Amazon.com to generate record sales.

Washington, D.C. -- A report released Thursday by the Labor Department said that jobless claims for last week dropped by 24,000 to 398,000, the fewest since April.

Initial claims from two weeks ago were revised up to 422,000 from an original reading of 418,000. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had expected new requests for jobless benefits to fall to 413,000 in the latest week.

Sidney, Neb. -- Cabela's reported Thursday that net income for second quarter rose to $22.3 million, from $19.4 million in the year-ago quarter.

Total revenue increased 7.7% to $562.1 million, and same-store sales increased 4.4%.

Austin -- Whole Foods Market reported Wednesday a profit jump of 35% to $88.5 million, compared with $65.7 million in the year-earlier period.

Revenue rose 11% to $2.4 billion, meeting Wall Street expectations, and same-store sales rose 8.4%.

SEATTLE - The nation’s leading online retailer late Tuesday reported a 51% increase in sales and better-than-expected profits as liquidation of former rival Borders began.

If it wasn’t already apparent, the juxtaposition of these events in the same week is a harsh reminder that pure-play online retailers have the ability to render conventional brick-and-mortar chains, or large segments of their business, obsolete despite efforts by the latter to pursue multichannel strategies that leverage physical infrastructures.

NEW YORK — Inflation-related concerns will prompt back-to-school shoppers to utilize certain shopping tactics, including smartphone and social network use, to save this year.

NEW YORK — Inflation-related concerns will prompt back-to-school shoppers to utilize certain shopping tactics, including smartphone and social network use, to save this year.