ShopperTrak: March 2013

Total U.S. Shopper Traffic in Retail Stores and Malls for March 2013

Shopper activity increased last month with the Easter holiday and students on spring break. March retail foot traffic increased 25.8% compared with February 2013, continuing positive month-over-month retail traffic trends. Foot traffic for March 2013 increased 1.5% compared with the same month in 2012.

Many schools closed for their week-long spring breaks in March, freeing school faculty, staff and students to visit stores and malls. Often, people travel with friends and family during this break time which drove shopping for vacation necessities in early March and throughout the month.

The Easter holiday capped off the month on March 31 and became the main driver of March’s foot-traffic gains. Shopping – from spring shoes and clothing to candy and gifts – built up throughout the month. Often, Easter and the week leading up to it fall in April. However, all of these days fell in March this year, pulling all Easter shopping activity earlier in the calendar.

The gains for the month, however, could have been even higher. Many regions of the country experienced unseasonably cool weather and late winter snowstorms. This hindered consumers’ shopping trips and tendency to purchase spring merchandise.

“While foot traffic has been increasing, year-over-year comparisons of shopper activity may dip in April since Easter has passed,” said Bill Martin, ShopperTrak founder. “Once the weather warms, we expect consumers to visit more retail stores and malls to select new spring clothing and other seasonal merchandise.”

ShopperTrak's data and analyses in this article are based on counting billions of shoppers in more than 60,000 locations across 76 countries. ShopperTrak is a leading retail technology company that anonymously counts people, analyzes data and identifies opportunities to increase revenue for retailers, mall developers and entertainment venues. Find out more at http://www.shoppertrak.com.