Tag / retail

by Hoosier Econ

Walmart Expanding on College Campuses

I took a look at some Walmart store expansion numbers to see where the company is expanding. This is current data from February 2015.

First lets go overseas where they are ramping up in South Africa

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The current U.S. data is where I found the college campus expansion numbers.

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Here is more about the recent growth on college campuses via INSIDE Higher Ed –

In January 2011, Walmart opened its first location on a university campus at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, a half-hour drive from its corporate headquarters. Now, Walmart has announced that it will be opening a second campus location, at Arizona State University, with luck by May, according to Delia Garcia, a Walmart spokeswoman. A third location, at Georgia Tech, is slated to open at a to-be-determined time next year. “Walmart on campus is an opportunity to bring low prices to students, reach new customers and serve our on-campus customers in a convenient way,” Garcia said in an interview.

by Hoosier Econ

2015 Easter Retail Sales

Easter retail season is upon the United States and sales should spike this week. Here is what the National Retail Federation has projected for Easter sales:

80% of Americans said they plan to celebrate the Easter holiday this year by doling out an average $140.62 per person, up 2.3% from a year ago. Spending this Easter is expected to top $16.4 billion, up from $15.8 billion last year.

Here is a breakdown of the spending:

New clothes – $2.9 billion
Food – $5.3 billion
Candy – $2.2 billion
Gifts – $2.4 billion
Flowers – $1.1 billion
Decorations – $998 million
Greeting cards – $695 million

To this blogger, here is what my money will be spent on….

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H\T TheCityWire.com

by Hoosier Econ

Top 2014 Restaurant Franchise Sales Statistics

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New sales stats have been released for the top 50 franchise restaurants of 2014. Good numbers to look at if you are thinking about investing in one. I’m only posting the top 25, so visit StatisticBrain.com for the rest of the list. (Statistics are total sales / average store sales)

McDonald’s $35,600,000,000 / $2,600,000
Subway $12,100,000,000 / $481,000
Starbucks $10,600,000,000 / $1,223,000
Wendy’s $8,600,000,000 / $1,483,800
Burger King $8,587,000,000 / $1,195,000
Taco Bell $7,478,000,000 / $1,363,000
Dunkin’ Donuts $6,264,200,000 / $857,400
Pizza Hut $5,666,000,000 / $883,000
Chick-Fil-A $4,621,100,000 / $3,157,900
KFC $4,459,000,000 / $957,000
Panera Bread $3,861,000,000 / $2,427,200
Sonic Drive-In $3,790,700,000 / $1,074,000
Domino’s Pizza $3,500,000,000 / $710,200
Jack in the Box $3,084,900,000 / $1,379,000
Arby’s $2,992,000,000 / $993,200
Chipotle Mexican Grill $2,731,200,000 / $2,113,000
Papa John’s $2,402,400,000 / $829,000
Dairy Queen $2,300,000,000 / $545,000
Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen $2,253,000,000 / $1,242,000
Hardee’s $1,900,000,000 / $1,145,000
Panda Express $1,797,400,000 / $1,237,000
Little Caesars $1,684,000,000 / $465,000
Whataburger $1,476,800,000 / $1,996,000
Carl’s Jr. $1,400,000,000 / $1,470,000
Jimmy John’s $1,262,800,000 / $878,800

by Hoosier Econ

What Percent of Christmas Gifts Get Returned

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A 2013 National Retail Federation survey found that about 35% of consumers returned at least one holiday gift. On average, though, those who returned gifts took back four unwanted items for an exchange or refund. Those numbers don’t even reflect how many people received gifts they didn’t like but weren’t able to return – or simply didn’t bother to take back.

You can read here Kiplinger’s “Seven Reasons Your Gift Will Be Returned”

by Hoosier Econ

Graph of the Day: E-commerce Spending

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Via Wall Street Journal

by Hoosier Econ

Obscene Profits by Government

Economist Mark J. Perry makes this point about Black Friday retail sales:

On Black Friday, avg retailer will make $3.30 in profits per $100 of sales, but the average state/local government’s take will be almost $7

by Hoosier Econ

Where Did the Term “Black Friday” Come From?

Economically speaking today is “The Day” for many retailers to take in massive amounts of revenue from eager holiday shoppers. “Black Friday” has been embedded into the American culture for many decades now. The term itself is hardly ever explored in its origin. I have found one historical explanation via The American Dialect Society:

[From *Public Relations News*, 18 December 1961, p. 2. This weekly
newsletter was published by Denny Griswold of 815 Park Avenue, New
York, NY.]

Santa has brought Philadelphia stores a present in the form of “one of
the biggest shopping weekends in recent history.” At the same time,
it has again been proven that there is a direct relationship between
sales and public relations.

For downtown merchants throughout the nation, the biggest shopping
days normally are the two following Thanksgiving Day. Resulting
traffic jams are an irksome problem to the police and, in
Philadelphia, it became customary for officers to refer to the
post-Thanksgiving days as Black Friday and Black Saturday. Hardly a
stimulus for good business, the problem was discussed by the merchants
with their Deputy City Representative, Abe S. Rosen, one of the
country’s most experienced municipal PR executives. He recommended
adoption of a positive approach which would convert Black Friday and
Black Saturday to Big Friday and Big Saturday. The media cooperated
in spreading the news of the beauty of Christmas-decorated downtown
Philadelphia, the popularity of a “family-day outing” to the
department stores during the Thanksgiving weekend, the increased
parking facilities, and the use of additional police officers for
guaranteeing a free flow of traffic … Rosen reports that business
over the weekend was so good that merchants are giving downtown
Philadelphia “a starry-eyed new look.”