"Last year, the data we tracked showed that most retailers had climbed out of the hole the 2008 recession had created in their preholiday sales," said Stew Langille, director of marketing for Intuit Personal Finance Group. "This year, it seems clear that while there was a distinct rebound, growth has decelerated and we haven't returned to prerecession spending. We've hit a new normal and it will be interesting to see what the holiday season brings."
Mint.com examined the same group of retailers as it did last year, which are representative of discretionary shopping categories, to see how American spending is changing. The group was selected from among more than 13,000 national retailers. All were top performers in the third quarter 2009, based on average monthly spend per user. This year's data looks at Q1-Q3 2010, vs. where each company stood at this time last year, and includes:
Aeropostale -- The clothing retailer grew 10 percent last year from its 2008 low, and grew again in 2010, up an additional 6.8 percent. Best Buy -- The electronics retailer recovered last year from a decline of 7 percent during the 2008 recession to show 1 percent growth. This year, the company is up an additional 4.1 percent. Fry's -- Fry's trailed competitor Best Buy dramatically in its recovery last year, but this year shows a 6.9 percent increase. J.Crew -- The clothing retailer showed 4 percent year-over-year growth in 2009, and looks strong heading into the holidays with a 9.2 percent increase in spending. Sears -- The department store's sales last year showed 8 percent year-over-year growth, after falling off 10 percent at its recession low. This year the company posts growth again, with a 6.4 percent increase. Target -- One of the only retailers that remained down in 2009, reporting a 4 percent year-over-year decline,
Fry's Electronics Black Friday 2010
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