April Retail Report – Business Is Back! But Don’t Forget Promotions
The Big Picture Both macroeconomic and retail data show that the U.S. economy is picking up. In fact, the IMF now predicts that the economy will grow faster than the 3.1% growth spurt forecast for this year. During March business was up almost 20% among many of our merchants. We’re also seeing increases for April [...]
Spring Retail Report: Men’s Leads Recovery; Key Sales Days Ahead
The Big Picture The U.S. economy is expected to experience slow growth through 2012, according to new forecasts released by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles. The economy is expected to grow 3.2% in the first quarter of this year and then level off to around 2% for the remainder of the year. [...]
February Retail Report: Women’s Makes Gains & Our Strategies for Driving the Upturn
The Big Picture The U.S. economy continues its cautious recovery, with some positive news coming both from the stock market and from the Fed. Stocks are finally catching up to 2009 levels and the Fed’s recent decision to increase its discount rate is being seen as a sign of strength. It seems that we also [...]
January Retail Report: Trends & Fall Plans
The Big Picture The U.S. economy continues its slow tick to recovery, yet unemployment remains high and consumers are keeping a lid on their spending. Although the major banks have returned to big profits, credit is still tight, making it difficult for retailers to get extra funding for their businesses. Cash remains king and the [...]
Dec. Retail Report – Sales Improve; Spring Strategy
The Big Picture Consumer confidence grew for the second month in a row in December, with proof coming in slight gains over the holiday season. Steady improvements in the U.S. economy have helped boost confidence, including an upswing in the housing market. But although optimism is increasing, unemployment remains high and third-quarter growth has been [...]
November ’09 Retail Report
As we head further into the holiday season consumers are still tentative about the overall economy. Retail sales improved in October, but were down again in November. Meanwhile, consumer confidence has improved slightly, due to the fact that consumers do not expect business conditions to worsen. As we look to our holiday forecasts, we must [...]
October ’09 Retail Report
In the retail apparel market, September was another challenging month. The good news is we are seeing improvements so far in October, due to both pent-up demand and cooler weather, which is encouraging shoppers to fill out their winter wardrobes.
September ’09 Retail Report
The Big Picture The Federal Reserve recently announced that the economy is “picking up,” yet unemployment is still expected to exceed 10% before the end of the year. Economic data continues to be mixed, with sales of existing homes falling, despite consumer confidence rising. In the apparel business, fall continues to be challenging. While we [...]
August ’09 Retail Report
The Big Picture The U.S. economy is showing more signs that the recession is finally coming to a close. Housing prices in some areas rose for the first time in July, and consumer confidence inched its way back up in August. The stock market was buoyed earlier this week by President Barack Obama’s decision to [...]
July ’09 Retail Report
The Big Picture Recent leading indicators, such as stock market gains and increased consumer expectations, hint that the recession is coming to an end. Consumer confidence around the world improved in the second quarter, and new U.S. home sales rose sharply in June. While the overall economic mood is improving, apparel sales have remained down [...]
June ’09 Retail Report
The Big Picture Key economic data showed improvements for the second consecutive month in June, leading many to predict that the worst of the recession is behind us. Both consumer spending and confidence is up, and the rate of unemployment is slowing. Analysts are expecting the economy to contract by 2% to 3% this quarter, [...]
May ’09 Retail Report
The Big Picture Both the stock market and consumer confidence made gains in May, leading economists to predict that the worst of the recession could be over. Particularly important to retailers was the resurgence in consumer confidence, which reached its highest level in May since September of last year, thanks to improved optimism about the [...]
April ’09 Retail Report
The Big Picture While April brought no great relief from the economic downturn that set in last fall, we have seen a further stabilization of certain markets and sectors, including some retail segments. Brands such as Coach, Gucci and Louis Vuitton have reported an uptick in first quarter sales, although they are nowhere near last [...]
March ’09 Retail Report
The Big Picture While there are no signs yet of an economic turnaround, the government’s slightly rosier tone, and plan to buy up toxic bank assets have given the markets some cheer. The stock markets have managed to rally in recent days, aided by news of increased housing sales. For retailers, February brought some sales [...]
February ’09 Retail Report
The Big Picture Further evidence of what really happened over the holiday shopping season was revealed last week when major department stores released their quarterly results. Saks Inc., which led the steep discount push with its 70% off designer sale, reported a 15% drop in sales and a $99 million loss, while Macy’s reported a [...]
January ’09 Retail Report
The Big Picture Although there were no new shocks to the system, the U.S. economy continued to sputter in January, compounded by news of weak holiday sales. The Commerce Department reported that December retail sales fell 2.7% from the previous month and 9.8% from a year ago. Congress responded to the downturn by proposing a [...]
December ’08 Retail Report
The Big Picture The recession continued to rattle a number of sectors in December, including the U.S. auto industry, which sought billions of dollars in federal funds just to stay alive. The stock market, meanwhile, continued in its downward trend but was less volatile than in November. It appears that the initial shock over the [...]
November ’08 Retail Report
The Big Picture The U.S. economy continued to take punches in November, as growth slowed and unemployment rose. Third quarter G.D. P. notched up just 0.5%, due to the decline in consumer spending. Meanwhile, wholesale prices for apparel fell 1% in October as the economic slowdown put the brakes on inflation. With the economy on [...]
October ’08 Retail Report
The Big Picture The U.S. economy continued in a state of uncertainty in October, despite the $750 billion bank bailout bill. The Dow Jones swung wildly on contradictory news that home sales were up in September, yet consumer confidence in October fell to a record low. Now the Fed is hoping that a half-point interest [...]
