retail sales

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Black Friday: Traffic Up, Sales Down

Thanks to Thursday store openings

(Newser) - There were nearly 308 million store visits on Black Friday this year, a 3.5% increase from last year, but sales were down 1.8% to $11.2 billion, according to a ShopperTrak analysis. Why? Blame stores that actually opened on Thursday night, CNN reports. "While foot traffic did...

US Retail Sales Jumped 1.1% in September

iPhone 5 plays big role

(Newser) - Americans stepped up their retail spending in September, reflecting stronger sales of autos, electronics, and building supplies. Retail sales rose 1.1% last month, the Commerce Department said today. That followed a 1.2% increase in August, which was revised slightly higher. Both were the largest gains since October 2010....

How Apple Trains Its &#39;Geniuses&#39; to Play You
 How Apple Trains 
 Its 'Geniuses' 
 to Play You 
in case you missed it
Sep 1, 2012 1:24 PM CDT

How Apple Trains Its 'Geniuses' to Play You

A look inside a profoundly weird and ambitious training manual

(Newser) - Being an Apple Store "genius" takes more than technical know-how—it takes a company-provided crash course in psychology. Over at Gizmodo, Sam Biddle got hold of the Genius Training Student Workbook, a stunning volume full of stringent rules on how to interact with customers and each other, up to...

AT&T Builds Huge Apple-Esque Store

Chicago store will be 10,000 square feet, show off more than phones

(Newser) - AT&T is revamping its retail strategy in grand style, with a new 10,000-square-foot flagship store on Chicago's "Magnificent Mile" that will show off not just phones and tablets, but fitness applications and even "smartcar" features, Bloomberg reports. Apple comparisons are inevitable, but "we are...

In Price War With Walmart, Target Pulls Ahead

Cuts in food prices give Target biggest lead ever

(Newser) - Watch for falling prices, Walmart—they might hit you. Target had lower prices than its arch-rival this month for the first time since October, research from Bloomberg has concluded. Indeed, Target won out by the largest margin yet seen in the two years Bloomberg has been tracking the numbers. The...

Why June's Falling Retail Sales Matter

Because drop marks the first 3-month decline since 2008

(Newser) - Americans cut their spending at retail businesses for a third straight month, as a weak job market has made consumers more cautious. The Commerce Department says retail sales fell 0.5% in June from May. That followed declines of 0.2% and 0.5% in the previous two months. It...

New E-Sales Taxes Looming
 New E-Sales Taxes Looming 
Jul 9, 2012 9:39 AM CDT

New E-Sales Taxes Looming

Taxes level playing field for bricks-and-mortar retailers

(Newser) - Bricks-and-mortar retailers are cheering as states are increasingly moving to tax online retailers the same as physical-world stores, reports the Washington Post . With online shopping reaching $200 billion last year and jumping 15% in the first quarter of 2012, online sales taxes would be no small figure—one group estimated...

Why JCPenney's No-Coupon Experiment Is a Bust

People actually like sales, coupons: Brad Tuttle

(Newser) - JCPenney’s new plan —stop offering huge markdowns on inflated, “fake prices” in order to offer “fair and square” pricing—sounds good in theory. Prices start at least 40% lower than they had been, with no need for customers to take advantage of sales or coupons...

Peeved at Amazon, Target Yanks Kindle

Chain sick of customers checking out products before buying them on Amazon

(Newser) - In a sign of rising tension between online stores and their bricks-and-mortar counterparts, Target says it is going to stop selling Amazon's Kindle products. The company, one of the biggest offline sellers of Amazon's e-readers and tablets, has become fed up with shoppers using its stores as a...

Slashed Prices Signal Retailer Worries

Chains hoping deep discounts will move merchandise

(Newser) - While store bargains may have shoppers saying "ho, ho, ho," they've got retailers thinking: "Oh-oh." Heavy discounts in the last days before Christmas are a signal companies are worried they'll be stuck with inventory that isn't moving off the shelves. Retailers had high...

Cyber Monday Was Biggest-Ever Online Shopping Day

Sales up 22% to $1.25B

(Newser) - This year's Cyber Monday was the biggest day in the history of online shopping, with a record $1.25 billion in sales, up from $1.03 billion last year, according to research firm comScore. Online sales were very strong all through the holiday weekend, but the following Monday "...

Black Friday Sets $11.4B Record

Consumers shrug off unemployment, pessimism, and spend

(Newser) - Holiday shoppers put their economic fears on layaway on Friday, and instead bought and charged their way to a record huge Black Friday, reports Bloomberg . With $11.4 billion spent at retail stores and malls on Friday, spending was up 6.6% from last year, the biggest one-year gain since...

'Black Thursday,' 'Black Midnight' Worked: Retail Analysts Say Starting Black Friday Earlier Could Become Norm
 Yep, 'Black Midnight' Worked 
UPDATED
Nov 26, 2011 8:18 AM CST

Yep, 'Black Midnight' Worked

Analysts say earlier hours could become the norm

(Newser) - Despite outcry and even protests beforehand, it appears the strategy of opening as early as 10pm Thursday night worked for Black Friday retailers, meaning “ Black Midnight ” or even “ Black Thursday ” will likely become the norm. The Los Angeles Times reports that Toys R Us, Sears, and...

Target Worker Fights 'Black Midnight' Hours

Shifts start at 11pm on Thanksgiving, to employees' dismay

(Newser) - If you rolled your eyes at the news that some stores are opening at midnight on Black Friday, imagine how the employees of those stores feel. Target parking attendant Anthony Hardwick says that for his Black Friday shift—which starts at 11pm on Thursday—he’ll “have to go...

Retailers Ready Black Friday 'Dogfight' on TV Prices

Get ready for 40% price cuts across the board amid weak demand

(Newser) - Planning to score a new TV on Black Friday? Apparently this is the year to do so, as deals are exploding in what one analyst calls a “dogfight” between top US retailers. Last year, some retailers only slashed prices on high-end TVs. This year, expect to see discounts across...

Stores Turn Black Friday Into Black Midnight

Target, Macy's kicking off holiday shopping season earlier than ever

(Newser) - This year's Black Friday probably won't be the most lucrative for big American retailers—but for some, it will be the longest. For the first time, Macy's and Target are planning to open their doors and kick off the holiday shopping season at midnight on Thanksgiving night,...

JC Penney Yanks 'Too Pretty to Do Homework' T-Shirt

Sexist shirt pulled after online outcry

(Newser) - Credit the power of the Internet. An online outcry convinced JC Penney to stop selling a T-shirt for girls ages 7-10 emblazoned with the slogan: "I'm too pretty to do homework so my brother has to do it for me." The chain pulled the sexist shirt and...

Dow Rises 100+ on Retail Sales Report

S&P 500, Nasdaq also rise

(Newser) - Markets are up, at least for now: The Dow was up more than 100 points at open, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq following suit, up about 11 and 13 points, respectively, MarketWatch reports. An upbeat report on retail sales no doubt prodded stocks upward: July sales rose a...

Walmart Suffering Biggest-Ever Slump

Execs admit retail giant lost its way

(Newser) - Walmart is suffering its worst-ever slump in US sales and is widely expected to post more disappointing figures when it reports earnings today. Analysts say the retail giant's woes are the result of its failure to follow founder Sam Walton's formula of providing ordinary Americans with "every day low...

Retail Sales Rise for 5th Straight Month

Low inflation, big discounts bring customers to stores

(Newser) - Retail sales rose for a fifth straight month in November, as the biggest jump in department store sales in two years gave the holiday shopping season a strong start. Retail sales increased 0.8% last month, the Commerce Department announced today, beating analyst predictions of a 0.5% increase, according...

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