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Showing the lowest rate since October, new housing starts fell 3.8% in January from a month earlier. U.S. home builders are reporting a positive outlook as spring approaches, citing solid fundamentals for housing demand, such as job gains and low mortgage rates. Demand for housing has been strong over the past year but growth has... Read more »

A survey of over 5,700 consumers found that Nordstrom ranked first among retailers in customer satisfaction. It specifically ranked highest scores for atmosphere, checkout speed and finding the correct size/product the customer was looking for. One in five customers surveyed indicated they were dissatisfied in general with their fashion retail experience across all retailers. 40%... Read more »

By Chad Symens This article recently caught my attention and the wheels started turning: https://www.cnbc.com/2016/02/11/is-the-us-economy-running-out-of-gas.html. The current economic situation is confusing to the casual observer.  On the one hand, President Obama regularly speaks about the US economy being the strongest and most resilient economy in the world, and yet articles like this create doubt in... Read more »

The NRF forecasts a 3.1% increase in retail sales growth in 2016, which will exceed the 10 year industry average of 2.7%. The National Retail Federation also forecasts ecommerce growth to be between 6-9%. The NRF makes this forecast based on assumptions on employment gains. It believes that prospects for consumer spending are going to... Read more »

by Chad Symens Lowe’s acquisition of Rona could be game changer for the home improvement market. Home Depot has 2,273 stores with 182 located in Canada. Before the Rona acquisition, Lowes had 1,840 stores including Orchard Supply stores. The Rona acquisition will add 496 stores to Lowe’s portfolio which means that once it’s finalized, Lowe’s... Read more »

In a new report titled “How We Shop Now: What’s Next?,” Westfield London has unveiled five key trends that they believe will shape the retail industry of tomorrow. Combined, the trends paint a picture of what the store of the future is likely to look like, and the report reveals that customers will be looking... Read more »

On Wednesday, home improvement retailer Lowe’s made a $2.3 billion bid for Quebec-based home-improvement chain Rona. The deal comes 4 years after an attempted hostile acquisition that faced opposition from major political parties. Initial indications point to a friendly deal this time around with approval from the Rona board of directors. “One of the big... Read more »

Retail veterans Ronny Shmoel and Albert Liniado are bringing back Circuit City, once the number one big-box tech chain in the marketplace before filing for bankruptcy in 2008. Their ambitious plan includes retail outlets, web sales, branded and private-label products, licensed kiosks, mobile shops and franchise opportunities, all under the iconic red and white banner.... Read more »