Retailing sectors that grew sales in the retail year ended Jan. 31 outnumbered outnumbered those that were down by a ratio of three to one. However, even among those which were up for the year, about half have yet to reach their pre-recession peak levels of 2006 and 2007, according to the latest report from MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse.


“A combination of rising consumer demand and strong pricing continued to drive retail sales in January,” said Michael McNamara, vice president, research and analysis for MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse. “Although less robust, the trends we observed were similar to those recorded in the fourth quarter of 2010. Most sectors continued to post positive year-over-year results during the month despite consumers taking a pause in spending and repeated snow storms affecting the East Coast.”


McNamara also notes that there were varied factors influencing January sales, including the continuing high unemployment rate, rising prices such as fuel costs, increases in consumer confidence and continuing improvements in the financial markets. 


“With gasoline prices up about 14% over prices a year ago, that means less disposable income in consumers’ wallets,” he said. “They are more likely to consolidate trips to the mall and shop closer to home.”

In terms of sectors, January, 2011 had notable strengths and weaknesses. Here are some specifics:



  • Posting their sixth consecutive month of positive year-over-year growth, Total Apparel sales continued to do well in January albeit at a slightly lower growth rate than the very robust Q4 2010 rate. All sub-sectors of Apparel posted solid year-over-year increases, the most notable of which came from the Family (Teen) and Men’s categories, respectively increasing 12.8% and 8.1% year-over-year.

  • The Electronics and Appliances sector posted a year-over-year decline of 3.8% in January following a modest year-over-year increase recorded in December. The Consumer Electronics sub-category declined by 3.3% and the Appliance sub-category fell sharply by 6.4%, its fourth consecutive year-over-year monthly decline.

  • e-Commerce continued to gain share at a very steady rate, posting double digit year-over-year increases for the third consecutive month, growing 12%.

  • Online Total Apparel as a sub-category of eCommerce showed slightly slower year-over-year growth compared to Q4 2010, but a strong 15% growth over January 2010. With the exception of women’s clothing, all apparel sub-sectors posted double digit growth, but again, lower than what was posted in December 2010.

  • Jewelry eCommerce fell into negative territory in January, reversing a solid December 2010.

  • However, Electronics eCommerce was up year over year by 6.1%.

The SpendingPulse Luxury Index, which measures sales at high-end restaurants, food stores, department stores and general apparel categories, posted a strong year-over-year growth of 6.1%, the second highest growth rate since May 2010.