News

Philadelphia – Holiday spending looks strong this year, with 85% of U.S. consumers planning to maintain or increase their holiday spending levels from last year. According to a new survey of 2,000 respondents from Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT) and Harris Interactive, of those who plan to spend more, 15% plan to increase spending on electronics, 14% plan to purchase more gift cards, 13% will spend more on apparel and 10% will spend more on home goods.

Nearly nine-in-10 (86%) working consumers plan to spend at least some time shopping or browsing online for gifts during work hours this Cyber Monday. A new RetailMeNot retail trends report also shows that 25% of working Americans plan to actually spend four hours or more shopping online for gifts during work hours that day.

Phoenix – PetSmart reported a 12% increase in net income, to $92 million from $82 million a year earlier, during the third quarter of 2013. Total sales grew about 4%, to $1.69 billion from $1.62 billion, while same-store sales increased 2.7%.

Looking ahead, PetSmart predicts same-store sales growth of 3%-3.5% and total sales growth of approximately 3% for fiscal 2013. For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013, PetSmart forecasts same-store sales growth of 2.5%-3.5% and a 2%-3% decrease in total sales.

Despite the growing popularity of online shopping, millions of consumers will flock to the stores this Black Friday. According to a recent study from WD Partners, "Amazon Can't Do That: Consumer Desire & the Store of the Future,” 79% of consumers rank instant ownership as a top factor in influencing how they shop.

Other store-friendly top influencers include sensory experience and product immersion (75%), emotional experience of interacting with live human beings, community, and personal service.

Ottawa, Ontario – Toys ‘R’ Us, which carries about 425 of the same video games as Amazon.com, is on average 37% higher priced than Amazon as of Nov 21. The latest Amazon Holiday Pricing Insights report from pricing solutions provider 360pi also found that the toy retailer has been keeping prices high during the last month and even increasing them during the week of Nov. 21, which may point to a deep discount strategy the week of Nov. 28.

Some other findings include:

PetSmart’s third quarter results benefited from consumers who continue spending money on their pets despite a still-challenging consumer environment.

The company’s earnings per share jumped 17.3% to $0.88 from $0.75 in the third quarter of 2012. Net income totaled $92 million for the quarter, compared to $82 million in last year’s third quarter.

Cleveland -- Holiday spending expectations are in line with last year when in-store shopping accounted for 70% of spending, according to a new survey by Forest City Enterprises. The average in-store expenditure is expected to increase by 1% to about $774. The average online expenditure is expected to decrease by 0.3% to $330.

Holiday shoppers will be driven more than ever by value this year and that they expect to shift even more of their spending toward children, the study found.  

By Maria Haggerty, president, Dotcom Distribution

More than 1,000 U.S. merchants will offer free shipping this Dec. 18 on all orders with guaranteed delivery by Christmas. Just six days before Christmas, free shipping day attracts troves of last-minute shoppers looking for a good deal and generated more than one billion dollars in online sales last year.