Retail Industry Profile
07/2006

Retail is the second-largest industry in the United States both in number of establishments and number of employees. The U.S. retail industry generates $3.8 trillion in retail sales annually ($4.2 trillion if food service sales are included), approximately $11,993 per capita. The retail sector is also one of the largest worldwide. Wal-Mart is the world's largest retailer and the world's largest company with more than $312 billion (USD) in sales annually. Wal-Mart employs 1.3 million associates in the United States and more than 400,000 internationally. The second largest retailer in the world is France's Carrefour. Retail trade accounts for about 12.4 percent of all business establishments in the United States. Single-store businesses account for over 95 percent of all U.S. retailers, but generate less than 50 percent of all retail store sales. Gross margin typically runs between 31 and 33 percent of sales for the industry but varies widely by segment. Source - retailindustry.about.com

How Retailers Are Turning to Tech
06/2006

With e-commerce gaining steadily, bricks - and - mortar outfits are embracing new technologies to keep shoppers happy -- and spending. Newbie shoppers entering a Food Lion in Mooresville, N.C., might think they've come to the wrong place. The shop looks more like an electronics emporium than a traditional grocery store. Customers bustle about brandishing handheld scanners. Information kiosks dish out maps on how to find any item, such as that lattice pie crust hiding between aisles 7 and 8. Source: Business Week