Finance

Breaking all previous attendance records for Retail’s BIG Show, NRF’s 101st Annual Convention and EXPO, held recently at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City, welcomed 25,500 attendees from around the world, up from the 22,500 attendees who joined NRF for its 100th Anniversary in 2011.

The National Retail Federation announced today during its 101st Annual Convention and EXPO in New York the addition of five retail executives elected to serve on its Board of Directors. Each new Board member will serve a three-year term. Macy’s, Inc. Chairman, President and CEO Terry Lundgren was re-elected to serve another full-year as Chairman of the NRF Board.

According to NRF’s 2011 Holiday Returns Survey, 61.9 percent of holiday shoppers say they provide a gift receipt most or some of the time, the highest percent in the survey’s history. They survey also found more people are paying attention to and agreeing with retailers’ return policies as nine in 10 Americans (90.1%) say they find stores return policies to be fair, up from 88.4 percent last year.

Holiday shoppers are expected to spend an average of $155.43 on gift cards, the highest amount since 2007 and up from $145.61 last year. This holiday season, total spending on gift cards will reach $27.8 billion.

According to a preliminary Black Friday shopping survey, conducted for the National Retail Federation by BIGresearch, up to 152 million people plan to shop Black Friday weekend (Friday, Saturday and Sunday), higher than the 138 million people who planned to do so last year.

According to NRF’s annual Return Fraud Survey, completed by loss prevention executives at 103 retail companies, the retail industry will lose an estimated $3.48 billion to return fraud this holiday season, down from $3.73 billion last year. Annual return fraud will cost retailers an estimated $14.37 billion in 2011, up slightly from $13.66 billion in 2010.

The National Retail Federation announced today that Vicki Cantrell – a retail industry veteran who has held prominent positions at Tory Burch, Giorgio Armani, and Gucci – will join NRF as the association’s Senior Vice President, Communities and Executive Director, Shop.org on October 31.

According to the National Retail Federation’s 2011 Holiday Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by BIGresearch, holiday shoppers say they plan to shell out an average of $704.18 on holiday gifts and seasonal merchandise, down slightly from last year’s $718.98.* NRF is still forecasting overall holiday retail sales to grow 2.8 percent during the months of November and December to $465.6 billion.

The National Retail Federation today welcomed the introduction of bipartisan legislation sponsored by Representatives Steve Womack, R-Ark., and Jackie Speier, D-Calif., aimed at eliminating inequities of the current sales tax system in the United States. Also today, NRF released the initial results of a new poll showing that American voters believe the current sales tax system, which allows many online sales to go untaxed, needs to be simplified.

The National Retail Federation announced today that President Bill Clinton, Founder of the William J. Clinton Foundation and 42nd President of the United States, will keynote its 101st Annual Convention, January 15-18, 2012 at the Jacob K. Javits Center in New York City.

While the September jobs numbers were better than expected, there is no doubt the economy is still facing significant headwinds. With the start of the holiday season just three weeks away, the persistently high unemployment rate is expected to hinder consumer demand and impact confidence.

The 2011 holiday season can be summed up in one word: average. On the heels of a holiday season that outperformed most analysts’ expectations, holiday retail sales* for 2011 are expected to increase 2.8 percent to $465.6 billion, according to the National Retail Federation.

With the 2012 election season around the corner, the National Retail Federation today launched a first-of-its-kind major year-long advocacy campaign to advance a Jobs, Innovation, and Consumer Value Agenda on behalf of America’s retail industry and the $2.48 trillion in GDP and 41.6 million American jobs it supports.

A list of the fastest-growing retailers in the U.S., as compiled by STORES magazine.

NRF today urged a congressional committee to reject proposals for a jobs-killing National Retail Sales Tax or an equally-damaging Value Added Tax and instead focus on reform of the existing income tax system in order to boost job creation.

Retail sales increased for the tenth straight month in April, further evidence that the retail sector and consumer spending continue to lead the economic recovery. According to the National Retail Federation, retail industry sales (which exclude automobiles, gas stations, and restaurants) for April increased 0.2 percent seasonally adjusted from March and 4.0 percent unadjusted year-over-year, a positive but modest increase compared to previous months’ results, evidence that some consumers are beginning to feel the strain of high food and gas costs.

According to the National Retail Federation, retail industry sales (which exclude automobiles, gas stations, and restaurants) for March increased 0.6 percent seasonally adjusted from February and 3.9 percent unadjusted year-over-year.