Retail & Ecommerce

Retail sales stay steady in July as consumer spending defies pundits’ pessimism: Retailers benefited from falling gas prices and a Prime Day boost, even as inventory woes ate into profits.

High real estate prices lead homeowners to invest in home improvements: Lowe’s and Home Depot continue to see strong demand from both DIYers and professionals.

This should be off-price retail’s moment: But TJX Maxx and Marshall’s reported declining sales and store visits in Q2 as inflation curbed demand for discount goods.

US back-to-college retail spending will reach a new high of $73.9 billion this year, beating last year’s record of $71.0 billion and eclipsing the pre-pandemic figure of $54.5 billion in 2019.

China’s COVID-19 shutdowns hit high-end retailers hard: Tapestry and Estée Lauder are the latest companies to feel the brunt of a weakening Chinese economy.

Kohl’s doesn’t expect its fortunes to turn around anytime soon: The retailer slashed its financial forecast for the rest of the year, pointing to inflation as the cause for its softening sales.

Inflation gives Walmart a chance to shine: The retailer’s emphasis on value and low prices is attracting both low- and high-income shoppers and enabling it to retain grocery dominance.

Steep discounting hurt Target’s bottom line in Q2: But the retailer doesn’t expect the short-term hit to hamper its profits for the rest of the year.

More than half of US adults shop online at least once a week, and 16% do so at least once a day. Overall, online shopping is on the rise and moving to mobile.