Euclid: Retail sales down 7% year-over-year in January

San Francisco -- Shopper traffic in January dropped 7% year-over-year as harsh winter storms amplified the shift of shopping to online and mobile, according to Euclid’s monthly retail benchmarks report which analyzes shopper activity and behavior during the month of January. In-store engagement improved more than expected during the low traffic, post-holiday month, but it is unclear how much the longer visits benefitted sales.



Euclid asserts that its metrics illustrate a slightly cautious outlook for industry revenues, and estimates sales growth in the following retail verticals of:

• 1.3% decline year-over-year in general merchandise, apparel, furniture and other (GAFO) retail sales

• 1.7% growth year-over-year in clothing and apparel sales

• Flat year-over-year in general merchandise sales



Here are some of Euclid’s top findings in this month’s report around shopper behavior metrics:



• Storefront conversion was up one percent year-over-year, but down significantly from December as the holiday and post-holiday promotions died down.



• Duration increased 14% from last year, but the extra minutes spent in the store did not translate into additional dollars spent by consumers.



• Repeat visits decreased less than a percent, driven by bad weather and a hangover from a busy holiday season.



• The best shopping day of the month was Saturday, Jan. 10, which saw significantly more traffic and higher storefront conversion than the same day of the month last year. Shoppers spent more time in the store on average and bounced less than most other days in January. The results were likely buoyed by lingering holiday gift card spending.



• Friday, Jan. 9 was the worst shopping day of the month.

To view the complete findings, click here.