Kurt Barnard

Kurt Barnard
act again came department finally flying hopes retailers specialty stores together
I still say don't get your hopes up for the holidays. Yes, the specialty retailers did exceedingly well. Yes, the department stores look like they finally are getting their act together and yes, the discounters again came through with flying colors.
act again came department finally flying hopes retailers specialty stores together
I still say don't get your hopes up for the holidays, ... Yes, the specialty retailers did exceedingly well. Yes, the department stores look like they finally are getting their act together and yes, the discounters again came through with flying colors.
apparel based department fashion heard hit lower seen stores
Based on what we've heard and seen so far, the fashion apparel stores and department stores are going to be hit with lower profits.
consumer continues department discount shift specialty spending stores strong
There has been, and continues to be, a strong shift of consumer spending away from traditional department stores and specialty stores over to discount stores.
activity apparel chains chin couple department groups guiding higher january lower names retailers sales store took weak
It was really the department store chains and the apparel retailers that took it on the chin with weak January sales results. But a couple of names in those two groups are guiding higher than expected, predicated on expectations of lower promotional activity going into spring.
department news problem stores target watch
With Wal-Mart it's still a wait-and watch situation, but Target's news is a little worse. The problem with Target is that its department stores are underperforming.
broke clearance department despite discount doors fact people stayed stores strong
Despite the fact that it's a clearance month, we can still see strong trends. People stayed away from department stores and they broke down the doors at discount stores.
although department party sit sore stand stores
If you didn't do well as a retailer in January, you stand out like a sore thumb. It was really a party for retailers, although traditional department stores didn't sit at the party table.
business department marshall overall reason saying stores target
By shuttering the Marshall Field's catalogs, Target is saying something about its department stores business -- business isn't what it used to be, ... Part of the reason is that department stores overall are doing badly.
gap time
What the Gap is doing is not only what it must be doing, but what it should have done a long time ago.
clear economy evidence frightened happening list numbers point public saw today
What's happening is very simple. The numbers we saw today are clear evidence that the American public is shell-shocked to the point of being frightened over a big long list of circumstances surrounding the economy over which they have no power, no control.
bottom checks effect hurt itself nightmare results retailers tax worst
The worst part of these results is that they show that the effect of the tax rebate checks has petered out. This is a nightmare in itself for retailers and it doesn't bode well for Christmas. Also, we'll probably see more markdowns now, more than retailers anticipated for the holidays. That will hurt their bottom line.
companies consumer controls decent demand difficult economic evidence good however inventory nobody orders planning spring time until
They are all planning very cautiously, very carefully. Some companies have very decent inventory controls, but however good those controls are they still have to do some economic forecasting, and forecasting is a little difficult this time around. Nobody is going to spring for big orders until there's evidence that consumer demand is back, and there is no such evidence to date.
clear consumer decent evidence expect holiday last modest sales slow spending three
The sales clear evidence of modest consumer spending slow down. We expect a decent holiday sales season, but an unspectacular one. The last three have been spectacular, particularly the last one.