Data & Analytics

Nov. 11 2010
By Bridget Trask
Email: [email protected]

Is it ever too early to start planning for the holiday rush? Not in the retail sector, where revenue expectations rely on that all-important spike in fourth quarter sales. Every day counts, especially this year, when retailers will feel the full impact of a major change in the marketplace -- growth in customer demand for a shopping experience via multiple interaction channels.

Chelmsford, Mass. -- A report released by workforce management solution-provider Kronos found that holiday hiring levels are lagging behind 2009 numbers.

According to the Kronos Retail Labor Index, which analyzes demand and supply sides of the labor market within the U.S. retail sector, the index decreased in October to 3%, down 16% from the September 2010 level of 3.6%. (A level of 3% means that for every 100 applications received, three hirings occurred).

Scottsdale, Ariz. -- JDA Software Group, The Supply Chain Co., announced Thursday that Talbots has selected JDA Allocation to optimize product allocations at its 580 stores in the United States and Canada.

The solution is being implemented to help Talbots eliminate the manual process of creating store-specific allocations based on inventory and assortment plans for new and existing products. The retailer selected JDA Managed Services to handle the long-term, day-to-day management and operation of JDA Allocation.

Chicago -- Jones Lang LaSalle announced it has formed an alliance with the Property Tax division within Thomson Reuters’ Tax & Accounting business to provide tax mitigation services to corporate real estate clients.

Jones Lang LaSalle’s Real Estate Tax Mitigation offering provides review, recommendations and appeal processes to manage a corporation’s real estate tax budget.

Purchase, N.Y. -- A report release Thursday by MasterCard Advisors said that in October total retail sales, ex-auto, grew by 3.3% year-over-year, the strongest year-to-year pace since April.

Similarly, according to MasterCard Advisors’ SpendingPulse, a macro-economic report tracking national retail and service sales, seasonally adjusted month-to-month sales were up by 3.1%. Excluding both auto and gasoline, on a seasonally unadjusted basis, year-over-year sales in October grew by 2.7%, slightly more than double September’s 1.3% increase.

Menomonee Falls, Wis. -- Kohl's Corp. reported late Wednesday it earned $194 million in the quarter ended Oct. 30, compared with nearly identical net income of $193 million in the year-ago period. The retailer cited rising costs for the flat profit performance.

Revenue rose 4.2% to $4.22 billion, just missing Wall Street expectations of $4.3 billion.