Retail Sales... "Low-End" Bias Dissapating

Posted on Thursday, November 5, 2009

Same store retail sales were up 1.9% from the same period of 2008. Interestingly enough, the bifurcation between low-end (outperforming) and high-end (underperforming) is dissapating. Below we can see strength not only in "low-end" retailers like TJX (parent company of TJ Maxx and Marshalls), but in high-end retailers (i.e. Nordstrom) for the first time in a LONG time.

Those underperforming now? Those stuck in the middle of the road (i.e. JC Penney) and those with idiotic management (i.e. Abercrombie, which is just NOW abandoning its "we won't reduce prices in the worst consumer led recession in 50 years" mantra).