Chain Stores Report Sales Growth in Feb. : Shopping: New retail figures indicate favorable consumer response to the spring fashions.
Several big specialty apparel retailers and department store chains today reported strong February sales growth in a sign that consumers are responding favorably to new spring fashions.
Mass merchandiser K mart Corp. said its overall results also benefited from good gains in women’s, men’s and children’s clothing lines.
Industry analysts said the February tallies from the nation’s major retailers suggest consumers haven’t turned their backs on shopping despite a lukewarm economy.
“Although it’s not a robust retail environment, it certainly bodes well for a decent year,” said retail analyst Linda R. Morris, of PNC Financial Corp. in Philadelphia. “It does signal that the consumer is continuing to spend.”
Retailers reporting today included roughly half of the country’s big chains. Most of the rest posted their February results a week ago, including the nation’s largest general merchandiser Sears, Roebuck & Co., discounter Wal-Mart Stores Inc., department store operator J. C. Penney Co. Inc. and others.
Last week’s reports--with the exception of the ones from Sears and Montgomery Ward & Co.--showed solid sales increases that in several cases were better than expected.
Dayton Hudson Corp., a Minneapolis-based owner of department stores and the Target discount chain, said sales growth at all three of its operating units surpassed projected levels.
“We are encouraged that our businesses continue to show strong, steady growth and we are optimistic about 1990,” Dayton Hudson’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Kenneth A. Macke said. “These increases are strong against a solid February last year.”
Total sales rose 13.1% to $821 million in the four weeks ended March 3 from $725 million a year earlier, Dayton Hudson said. Sales at all of its stores open at least a year increased 6.3%.
Results at stores open a year or longer, called same-store or comparable-store sales, are considered the best reflection of a retailer’s performance. The excitement of new openings can boost sales above levels that can be sustained over time.
K mart, based in Troy, Mich., said its sales for the four weeks ended Feb. 28 grew 14.7% to $1.9 billion from $1.66 billion a year earlier. Same-store sales were up 4.4%. The retailer, second in 1989 sales volume behind Sears, also owns the Waldenbooks bookstore chain, Payless Drug Stores and other chains besides its flagship K mart discount stores.
K mart recently said it is speeding up plans to open additional stores and refurbish others as it attempts to capitalize on the Sears weakness and to stay ahead of fast-growing rival Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart is widely considered a powerful contender for the No. 1 ranking in terms of annual merchandise sales revenue, possibly as soon as this year.
Chains specializing in apparel were the star performers during February.
The Limited Inc., the largest specialty apparel retailer in the country, reported a 21% gain in total sales for the four weeks ended March 3 to $318.2 million from $263.8 million. On a comparable-store basis, sales were up 16%.
The Columbus, Ohio-based chain said that if the results at the Lerner Woman division had been excluded from last year’s tally, overall sales would have jumped 26%. The Limited sold Lerner Woman last spring.
San Francisco-based Gap Inc., another nationwide apparel chain, said its sales surged 29% to $103 million from $80 million a year earlier. Same-store sales gained 20%.
