Consumers will shop and visit more stores this November and December, according to ShopperTrak, an analyzer of retail foot traffic. ShopperTrak expects national retail sales to rise 3.3 percent, and retail foot traffic will increase 2.8 percent. ShopperTrak’s holiday sales increase forecast follows 34 of the past 35 months of year-over-year U.S. retail sales growth. The expected increase in foot traffic trumps the 2011 holiday season’s 2.2 percent decrease from 2010. In the apparel and accessories category, foot traffic will increase 3.5 percent, and sales should increase four percent over last season, according to ShopperTrak.
ShopperTrak founder, Bill Martin, says, “Our shopper visit data tells us that consumers are visiting more stores than last year. This influx of traffic will present opportunities for retailers to convert these visitors into buyers, especially with the extended holiday shopping season.” Thirty-two days lie between Black Friday and Christmas this year, the longest interval possible.
ShopperTrak measures foot traffic in more than 50,000 locations in the U.S., and analyzes the data in a proprietary, econometric model to create its ShopperTrak National Retail Sales Estimate™ (NRSE) of general merchandise, apparel and accessories, furniture, and other sales (GAFO). Its estimates have been accurate to within a three percent margin since January 2005.