Friday, January 07, 2000
Retailers had merry season
BY LISA BIANK FASIG
The Cincinnati Enquirer
When they weren't decking the halls, shoppers in December were hitting the malls. And hitting them. And hitting them.
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RETAIL SALES
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December same-store sales reported by leading retailers (sales compare the latest year's sales with those of the previous year):
• Wal-Mart Stores, up 9.1 percent.
• Sears, Roebuck and Co., down 0.6 percent.
• Kmart, up 5.5 percent.
• Dayton Hudson, up 3.6 percent.
• J.C. Penney Co., up 0.5 percent (Penney stores only).
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Retail reports released Thursday showed that holiday sales in 1999 turned out to be the highest in seven years. The Bloomberg Composite Same-Store Sales Index rose 6.52 percent in December from the same period a year earlier. In November, the index rose 3.85 percent.
“This is one of the best holiday seasons of the decade, absolutely,” said Scott Krugman, spokesman for the National Retail Federation. “We think when you use Department of Commerce numbers, we think we're going to see a 6.5 percent increase from last year.”
The month capped off a year when high consumer confidence and low unemployment encouraged many Americans to say “Yes” to more purchases. The spending occurred at all store categories — as shoppers sought electronics, jewelry and apparel — though discounters consistently reported some of the highest sales. Wal-Mart, for instance, posted a stunning 9.1 percent gain in sales at stores open at least a year.
Locally, Federated Department Stores reported a better-than-expected 6.4 percent increase in same-store sales. For the first 11 months of its fiscal year, the retailer's sales were up 4.6 percent.
Federated pleased
“It's a real tribute to the entire Federated organization that, through their hard work and dedication during this most important time of the year, we were able to deliver such impressive results,” Federated Chief Executive James Zimmerman said in a statement.
Dillard's Inc., which acquired Fairfield-based Mercantile Stores in 1998, said its same-store sales rose 2 percent. But sales at the Mercantile stores have been below target. Sales at core Dillard's stores — not including Mercantile — were up 5 percent.
Dayton-based Elder-Beerman Stores Corp. said its same-store sales rose 0.6 percent in December and 2.6 percent for November-December combined. Saks Inc., parent of Saks Fifth Avenue and Parisian, said its same-store sales rose 5 percent over December 1998.
Both the Gap Inc. and Limited Inc. reported a 5 percent same-store sales increase.
For many retailers, consistent high sales should translate to higher earnings, since stores would not have to make steep markdowns to encour age spending.
“I did spend more than I intended to,” said JoAnn Nienaber, a shopper from Fort Wright. “I don't know what it was, if it was just the weather. (But) I'm not really sorry.”
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