Data & Analytics

The strong customer traffic and sales trends retailers’ experienced Thanksgiving weekend extended into Cyber Monday when shoppers maintained their record pace of spending and propelled online sales to new heights.

PITTSBURGH — Electric vehicle charging stations recently opened at three Pittsburgh-area Giant Eagle stores, the retailer said.

The EV charging stations, made possible by a collaborative effort through a Pennsylvania Department of Energy grant, now are in operation at the chain's Robinson Township, Township of Pine and Monroeville supermarkets.

NEW YORK — Heading into December, consumers are feeling more confident about the economy and that is good news for retailers who are hoping for a strong holiday shopping season. After declining in October, The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, improved to 56 in November from 40.9 in Ocober. The Present Situation Index increased to 38.3 from 27.1. The Expectations Index rose to 67.8 from 50.

PITTSBURGH — Dick's Sporting Goods took another step in expanding out West with the announcement that it will build a distribution center in Goodyear, Ariz., that is expected to bring approximately 120 jobs to the area when business opens in early 2013.

The distribution center will be designed to ultimately support approximately 160 stores as Dick's Sporting Goods grows its store base in the Western United States over the next 5-10 years and is eventually expected to employ up to 300 associates, the company reported.

London – WorldPay, the global leader in payment processing has appointed Charlotte Speller, VP global marketing, for the e-commerce division of the business.

Charlotte joins WorldPay from Sage Pay, where she was head of marketing and PR and publisher of e-commerce and payments magazine Moving Money.

MINNEAPOLIS — Target will donate $5 million to local schools nationwide as part of the company's commitment to give $1 billion for education by the end of 2015.

The combination of earlier than ever opening hours, favorable weather and deal conscious consumers receptive to heightened promotional activity produced record sales over Thanksgiving weekend.

The National Retail Federation said an estimated 226 million shoppers visited stores and websites over Thanksgiving weekend, compared with 212 million last year, and spent an average of $398 per person, compared with $365 last year. Those findings are based on an NRF survey of 3,826 shoppers conducted over the weekend by BIGresearch.

Few vehicles on the NASCAR circuit look as good or are as identifiable on the track as the No. 42 Target Chevrolet with its red-and-white color scheme and distinctive Bullseye logo adorning the hood. Unfortunately for Target, style doesn’t count for anything in auto racing and driver Juan Pablo Montoya failed to win a race this year.