Retailers aim to close the e-commerce gap with AmazonEven with fewer days to buy holiday gifts, the healthy U.S. consumer appeared to give many retail companies a boost in the last quarter of 2019.
“These numbers validate continued optimism for increased investment and opportunity in the retail industry,” NRF Chief Executive Matthew Shay said. “This is a consumer-driven economy, and by any measure, the consumer has put the economy in a solid position for continued growth. This is a strong finish to the holiday season, and we think it’s a positive indicator of what’s ahead.”
AMZN’s earnings results, reported late last month, might paint a rosy portrait of the company’s success compared with much of the rest of the sector. But it’s important to remember that AMZN had a running start on one-day and same-day delivery, which is part of the catch-up game. It also has other non-retail forces feeding the beast.
M, which held an investor day Feb. 5, might be considered the poster child for the trials and tribulations many big-box retailers are facing and what they’re doing about it beyond letting triple-digit numbers of stores go dark. The stores also will set aside space for all-day food and beverage offerings – yes, you’ll be able to shop with a glass of wine in hand. The company hopes to also attract day workers, kind of like a coffee shop or flexible work space.
One tactic that analysts said they want more detail on is JWN’s partnership with direct-to-consumer brands. JWN is getting a name for itself as one that, like KSS, woos buzzy online brands such as Stella & Dot, the jewelry company, cosmetics maker Glossier, and clothing brands Everland and Reformation to its more sophisticated floors.
Speaking of grabbing market share, analysts widely expect WMT to snap up some of PIR’s lost sales and said they will be listening to how the behemoth of a retailer might attack that. Analysts point to the revolving door in the C-suite, which included departures from the company’s chief merchant in January and its chief e-commerce merchant in December.
How that smacks with reality is tough to discern since WMT has given no hint to how it performed during the holidays. Looking at past performances, WMT has reported only one miss on the bottom line in the last 16 quarters. Stay tuned, but, as always, keep in mind that past performance is not an indication of future results.No retail snapshot, of course, would be complete without a nod to the big boys of do-it-yourself stores.
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