February – normally a slower, post-holiday month for retailers – wasn’t so chilly at the cash registers. According to data released recently by the Department of Commerce, retail sales throughout the country increased 1 percent from the previous month and 8.1 percent from February 1999.
Furniture and home furnishing stores led the charge, according to the federal data, posting gains of 0.7 percent month-to-month and 8.8 percent year-to-year.
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General merchandise stores showed increases of 0.6 percent from the previous month and 6.8 percent from the previous year. Also performing better than expected was apparel, which increased 1.1 percent from January and 2.3 percent from February 1999.
In welcome news to retailers, consumers showed no signs of curbing spending, despite the fact that the Federal Reserve raised interest rates four times during the past year.
David Papazian, owner of David’s Furniture & Bedding on Smith Street in North Providence, credits Mother Nature – at least in part – for a strong winter season.
”It depends so much on New England weather,” he said. “If we have bad weather, no one goes out – so no one comes in.”
Don Elliott’s Furniture World in West Warwick has been in business for 30 years. For the past eight, Elliott has shifted his focus from new to high-end used furniture. Each year, he said, the business has grown – and this winter has been no exception.
“The place has been busy all winter,” he said.
Traditionally, said Elliott, a strong economy bodes well for new furniture dealers – the giants like Cardi’s and Alperts. But his business has prospered in recent years, including the first quarter of 2000.
In addition to furniture and home furnishings, it appears that consumer are adding to their wardrobes.
Consumers have been busy purchasing the newly arrived spring fashions, as well as home goods and electronics, said Rosalind Wells, chief economist at the National Retail Federation.
”In spite of efforts by the Fed to slow down spending, consumers showed no sign of moderating their spending,” said Wells. “Consumer confidence remained high light of a still strong economy and low unemployment levels.”
The solid retail numbers nation-wide, are evident throughout New England.
The Framingham, Mass.-based TJX Companies, Inc. – parent company for T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods and A.J. Wright stores, reported its March 2000 sales results. Sales for the five- week period ended April 1, 2000 were $824 million, up 7 percent over $772 million achieved during the five-week period ended April 3, 1999.
SHOPPERS THRONG to Marshall’s off Taunton Avenue in East Providence.
For the nine weeks ended April 1, 2000, sales reached $1,405 million, an 8 percent increase over last year’s $1,295 million. Consolidated comparable store sales for the five- week period ended April 1, 2000 increased 1 percent over last year. For the nine-week year-to-date period, consolidated comparable store sales increased 2 percent over last year.
Bernard Cammarata, chairman and chief executive officer of the TJX Companies, believes the company will enjoy a very strong first quarter, noting that the traditionally strong Easter sales have yet to be realized given the holiday is in late April this year. In fact, he expects to exceed most sales projections.
“Inventories and margins are in excellent shape,” said Cammarata.
Smaller businesses, like Uncle Ned’s Fish Factory in Millis, Mass., also got off to a strong start in 2000.
Dan Bowers, who owns the business along with his brother, Ned, said that good weather has not always bode well for the business – with more people finding the time for outdoor activities. But, perhaps because of the strong economy, he said, the hobby itself is growing – and so is Uncle Ned’s business.
“It has a lot to do with the growth of the hobby,” said Bowers.
Bowers said the Internet has helped. Not because of Uncle Ned’s site, he said, but because there are more tropical fish enthusiasts out there chatting with one another, recommending where the best selection of fish can be found.
“We have odd stuff – fish you only read about,” he said. “And now people are on the Internet, telling each other where to get good livestock.”
In Rhode Island, Leonard Lardaro’s latest Current Conditions Index – a measure of the strength of the state’s present economic climate — shows that the winter season was indeed a strong one for retail sales.
According to Lardaro’s CCI: “Retail sales rose by an incredible 17.4 percent – coming on the heels of a 15.7 percent increase in January.”
