Strong Apparel Sales Pace Retailers’ September Gains

Many of the nation’s biggest retailers reported Thursday that they had strong sales gains in September as the arrival of fall weather put consumers in the mood to buy clothes.

But other store owners said they continued to struggle last month as Americans shied away from making more expensive purchases.

“They were pretty good . . . better than we would have expected,” said Jeffrey Edelman, a retail industry analyst with Drexel Burnham Lambert Inc., of the stores’ overall results.

Monroe H. Greenstein, an analyst with Bear, Stearns & Co., said, “Apparel sales were good; durables were soft.”

Cooler weather in many regions sent shoppers into the stores in search of fall clothing in the last week to 10 days of September, giving apparel retailers a generally strong performance, the analysts said.

Critical Time

But sales of more expensive durable goods, which include items such as home appliances, continued to slump.

MAJOR RETAILERS’ SALES IN SEPTEMBER

In millions of dollars 1989 % change Sears 3,007 +0.4 K mart 2,574 +6.1 Wal-Mart Stores 1,973 +31.0 J.C. Penney 1,345 +11.7 Dayton Hudson 1,170 +16.4 May Dept.Stores 880.4 + 8.9 Woolworth* 484.0 +8.5 Montgomery Ward 444.9 + 1.0 Carter Hawley Hale 260.6 + 6.1

* Excludes foreign sales.