Major Retail Chains Enjoy Robust Sales in January

Most of the country’s big retailers on Thursday reported healthy January sales as stores benefited from light inventories and an unusually warm winter.

Last month’s low inventory levels, because of unexpectedly brisk Christmas business and tight control of stocks, relieved general merchandise and apparel retailers from having to slash prices to move out the excess goods.

Edward Johnson, a retail specialist with Prescott Ball & Turben Inc., calculated the industrywide sales rise last month at 10% and said, “That’s a very good increase year to year. That’s a continuation of the December momentum.”

Some analysts speculated that if stores had more merchandise to sell, the January sales gains would have been even stronger.

Monroe Greenstein of Bear, Stearns & Co. said one leading department store chain told him it had to scramble to locate merchandise to stock stores during January.

Goods were sharply depleted during December when business surpassed expectations. Also, many stores didn’t have much merchandise left over because they held inventories down to avoid being forced to drastically reduce prices to clear their shelves.

Warm Weather Helped

Unseasonably warm weather throughout much of the country last month probably encouraged shoppers, analysts said.

But the analysts recommended against attaching too much significance to the tallies because January is the least important month on the industry’s calendar.

Jeffrey Feiner, a vice president at Merrill Lynch, said apparel retailers have enjoyed a resurgence in recent months and will probably continue to benefit from women’s favorable reactions to more conservative styles now in the stores.

Apparel sales began a prolonged skid in August, 1987, largely because women shunned the latest fashions, especially the mini-skirt.

Retailers and analysts believe that same-store sales, those at stores that have been open more than a year, are a more accurate measure of performance than figures that include New stores’ sales.

Among the major retailers reporting Thursday, No. 1 Sears Roebuck said sales rose 11.4% in January and 7.3% for its fiscal year. Same-store sales were up 6.2% for the month and 3.4% for the year.

K mart Corp. said sales rose 6.9% in January and 6.5% over the year. Same-store sales rose 2.5% last month and 2.8% for the year.

J. C. Penney Co. posted a 2.4% gain for January and a drop of 0.1% for the year. Same-store sales rose 0.2% last month and fell 1.8% for the year. Its sales fell in part because the firm discontinued several merchandise lines in the past year.

May Department Stores’ January sales rose 25.8%; full-year sales rose 18.9%. Same-store sales rose 7.6% last month and 3.7% last year.

Wal-Mart Stores’ overall sales rose 30% last month and 29% for the year. The discount retailer’s same-store sales rose 13% in January and 12% for the year.

Dayton Hudson Corp. reported a 15.2% overall sales gain in January and a 14.4% rise for the year. Same-store stores rose 9.4% in the month and 3.1% in the year.

Montgomery Ward had an 8.3% January sales increase and a 4.6% rise for the year. It did not provide same-store sales figures.

Carter Hawley Hale Stores’ overall sales for its five department store divisions increased 13.8%. Same-store sales were up 12.7%. For the 52 weeks ended Jan. 28, overall sales increased 3.1% from the previous year, and same-store sales were up 2.5%.

MAJOR RETAILERS’ SALES IN JANUARY

In millions % of dollars Jan. sales change Sears 2,132 +11.4 K mart 1,578 +6.9 J.C. Penney 738 +2.4 May Dept. Stores 614.9 +25.8 Wal-Mart Stores 1,486 +30 Woolworth* 262 +12.2 Montgomery Ward 274.4 +8.3 Carter Hawley Hale 156.3 +13.8

* Excludes foreign sales.