| Behind The Store Front
Prepared for the Retail Council of Canada in partnership with Industry Canada By Jacobson Consulting Inc.
Recent Trends |
Retail sales are growing. A growing market, defined by population, gains in income and household formation are some of the many factors underlying retail growth. Evaluated in sector terms, the strong sales growth in sectors such as home furnishings and home centres suggest that household formation and home improvements may be key factors underlying some of the growth.
The next chart (Figure 32) shows sales growth by trade groups using the Monthly Retail Trade Survey. Utilization of the monthly data provides a picture through 2004. The pattern is generally consistent with the annual data presented elsewhere in the report.10 Data underlying the chart are available in Table 40 in the statistical appendix.
In aggregate terms, sales in the home centres trade group are more than 10 times larger than those in the computer and software stores speciality group. Hence, the home centre growth is a much bigger story in the broad economic picture than the low growth shown for the computer sector. On the other side, sales in the new car sector are 4 times larger than in the home centre group. Thus, the weak growth in auto retailing has proved a significant drag on the statistics for the broader retail sector. Note, these data are reported in nominal terms. Price deflation is a common story for computers but not for other retail trade groups.
The next chart (Figure 33) translates the sales into per capita terms to evaluate sector performance by province. The chart indicates above average performance in Quebec, Newfoundland and Western Canada and below average in Ontario.
The next chart (Figure 34) shows growth in key commodity categories carried by a panel of large retailers. The strong growth in dwelling-related items such as appliances is noteworthy.
The weak performance of the clothing sector is specially noted. Retailers with a strong clothing focus have faced major challenges in recent years. In contrast, things have looked rosier for stores, such as home furnishing and appliances, aimed at dwelling-related purchases.
10Data levels will not exactly match because of differences in survey design.