Consumers List Pure Plays and Multichannel Companies Among Favorite 50 Online Retailers

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For Immediate Release
Kathy Grannis or Ellen Davis (202)783-7971
grannisk@nrf.com or davise@nrf.com

Consumers List Pure Plays and Multichannel Companies Among Favorite 50 Online Retailers 

Washington, October 1, 2008 – Online retail may be a bright spot in this year’s retail landscape, but learning which websites customers prefer over others can be an interesting challenge. To understand which websites really catch consumers’ attention, STORES magazine and BIGresearch have compiled their annual Favorite 50 list, which ranks customers' favorite online retail companies. The list is published in the October edition of STORES magazine.  

Once a start-up internet book store, Amazon.com has grown to become the world’s largest online retailer and consumers’ favorite for the second year in a row. Amazon’s introduction of its Kindle book reader and other innovative promotions such as “Friday Five” and “Daily Deals” helps keep them ahead of the competition. 

“Consumers have been loud and clear about what they want from retailers when shopping online,” said Rick Gallagher, STORES Magazine publisher. “Retailers on the Favorite 50 list have listened to their shoppers and continue to implement new and better ways to serve their most loyal customers.” 

Other popular pure play companies on the list include online marketplace eBay.com, which came in second, search engine Google.com (#7) and online bargain warehouse Overstock.com (#8). 

In addition to pure-play retailers (those with websites but not stores or catalogs), a handful of multichannel retailers made the list. Wal-Mart.com secured the No. 3 spot with its one-hour online photo service and the more than one million items available on its website, while Target.com made the list at No. 6.

Consumers also raved about multichannel retailer BestBuy.com, which made the list at number four. Best Buy’s Outlet Center has weekly deals and links to customer reviews, as well as price cuts on new merchandise.

“The Internet has revolutionized how Americans shop,” said Phil Rist, Vice President of Strategy at BIGresearch. “Whether they’re researching merchandise, comparison shopping or just looking for gift ideas, consumers have come to expect a lot from the web and reward retailers that are getting it right.”

Department stores JCPenney.com (#5) and Kohls.com (#9) made the list, partially by offering exclusive labels and celebrity partnerships that help drive traffic and attract younger shoppers. With new bells and whistles to wow its online customers, Sears.com secured the No. 10 spot. 

Newcomers to the Favorite 50 this year include BananaRepublic.com (#41), BedBathandBeyond.com (#42) and BarnesandNoble.com (#50).

BIGresearch is a consumer market intelligence firm that provides unique consumer insights that are gathered online utilizing very large sample sizes. BIGresearch's syndicated Consumer Intentions and Actions survey monitors the pulse of more than 7,500 consumers each month to empower its clients with unique insights for identifying opportunities in a fragmented and changing marketplace. 

STORES Media is the publishing and communications group of the National Retail Federation whose offerings include STORES Magazine, STORES.org, STORES Knowledge Series, STORES First Edition and STORES Retail Deals. STORES products report on the broad spectrum of strategic issues facing senior retail executives, including: retail technology, supply chain and logistics, credit and payment systems, loss prevention, human resources, online retailing, communications, marketing, merchandising and other vital store operations.  

The National Retail Federation is the world's largest retail trade association, with membership that comprises all retail formats and channels of distribution including department, specialty, discount, catalog, Internet, independent stores, chain restaurants, drug stores and grocery stores as well as the industry's key trading partners of retail goods and services. NRF represents an industry with more than 1.6 million U.S. retail establishments, more than 24 million employees - about one in five American workers - and 2007 sales of $4.5 trillion. As the industry umbrella group, NRF also represents more than 100 state, national and international retail associations. www.nrf.com.  

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