Top Retailers Keep Their Eye on the Prize
The nation’s top retailers continue to find new ways to meet the needs of today’s consumers.
According to STORES Magazine, the Top 100 retailers in the United States continue to grow because “they embrace change” and react to the shifting needs of their customers.
Every July, STORES releases its annual list of top retailers based on U.S. sales. There was very little movement in this year’s Top 10, but there was growth as nine of the 10 saw increases in their sales. STORES credits their continued growth to their use of “a customer-centric, omnichannel focused business model.”
Wal-Mart continues to top the list followed by The Kroger Co. at No. 2, Costco at No. 3 and the Home Depot at No. 4. Lowe’s sits in the eighth position and Safeway holds the tenth spot.
“Every one of the top companies maintains a razor-sharp focus on addressing shifting consumer behaviors and is embracing changes in technology “ in particular the digital landscape,” says Susan Reda, editor, STORES Media. “It’s an amazing time to be in retail.”
Click here to see the entire 2015 Top 100.
Lowe’s to Open First Store in the Big Apple
Later this month, Lowe’s will open its first store in New York City. The new store will be located on the corner of Broadway and 68th Street in Manhattan and will be considerably smaller (approximately 30,000 square feet) than a typical suburban big box store. The home improvement retailer is looking to grow by finding new ways to reach urban markets. The Home Depot currently has two larger format stores in New York City.
Prices, Convenience Attract Millennials to Wal-Mart
More millennials are shopping at Wal-Mart not so much because they like the stores but because they like the stores’ prices and locations. According to Market Insights, a consumer marketing research firm, young adults born between 1983 and 1997 shop at Wal-Mart because they are strapped for cash and crunched for time. The top category for this consumer group when shopping at Wal-Mart is groceries.
Whole Foods to Debut Five Smaller Format Stores in ’16
Whole Foods plans to open five of its smaller format stores in the second half of 2016. The first store will debut in the Silver Lake area of Los Angeles. The new store format is 365 by Whole Foods Market, a reference to the grocer’s in-house brand. Additional stores are scheduled to open in Santa Monica, California; Portland, Oregon; Houston, Texas; and Bellevue, Washington.
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