Pedestrians walk past luxury shoes and handbags displayed in the window of a Coach Inc. store in New York. Retailers reported disappointing revenue during August, despite back-to-school sales. Bloomberg file
NEW YORK — Americans’
cautious spending on
clothing extended into August,
capping a weak back-to-school selling season for
retailers.
Several retailers including
clothiers Cato Corp. and
L Brands Inc. on Thursday
posted disappointing revenue
during the month,
which falls in the middle
of the second-biggest shopping
period of the year.
The results raise questions
about whether Americans
will spend during the
winter holidays in November
and December, a time
retailers can make up to 40
percent of their revenue for
the year. While the back-to-school
season, which runs
from mid-July through mid-September, isn’t an absolute
predictor of how Americans
will spend during the winter
holidays, it does offer insight
into consumers’ mindset.
“Overall, the month was
mediocre for sales,” said Michael
P. Niemira, chief economist
at the International
Council of Shopping Centers.
“The back-to-school
season started late and it
never had momentum.”
Overall, revenue at stores
opened at least a year — a
measure of a retailer’s health
— rose 3.7 percent in August,
according to a preliminary
tally of eight retailers by the
International Council of
Shopping Centers. That’s up
slightly from July’s 3.5 percent
gain but below the 6 percent
gain in August last year.
Only a sliver of retail chains
report monthly sales figures,
and the list doesn’t include
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Macy’s
Inc. and many other large
chains. In total, the retailers
that report monthly data
represent about 6 percent of
the $2.4 trillion in U.S. retail
industry sales.
But Thursday’s tally adds
to evidence that while jobs
are easier to get and the
turnaround in the housing
market is gaining momentum,
the improvements have
not been enough to sustain
higher levels of spending for
most Americans. Most still
are juggling tepid wage gains
with higher costs of living.
As a result, Americans in
recent months have been
shifting their spending to
big ticket items like cars and
home improvement, which
has left little room for clothing
and impulse purchases.
Indeed, last month, a number
of retailers including Macy’s
Inc., Target Corp. and Wal-Mart lowered their expectations
for the rest of the year.
Conversely, automotive
retailer AutoNation Inc. on
Thursday issued a report that
new vehicle sales climbed
32 percent in August, led by
strong sales of premium luxury
vehicles. The report from
AutoNation followed robust
August sales from companies
in the auto industry, which
had its best month in six years.
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