There is still halloween candy to eat, but retailers put the 'creep' into holiday shopping right away

Due to Christmas creep, retailers are moving out the pumpkins and putting out winter holiday right away, if not already. Some retail trends shoppers can look forward to now:

• Early season deals are popping up and not waiting for Black Friday. Wal-Mart announced November 1 launches “savings and holiday retailtainment”. The iPad mini will be priced at $199 instead of $268. Target, Amazon, Kmart and Toys R Us all introduced their “hot toy” lists in early Fall with sales starting now.
• Thanks to the broad effects of Amazon Prime, Best Buy and Target and many other retailers are offering free shipping throughout the season.
• Many retailers have implemented their in-store and curb pick-up programs in time for the holidays, using online pre-purchasing and mobile apps in store to get shoppers checked out quickly.

 Sales will increase dramatically on Thanksgiving and Black Friday, as usual, but predictions are that 15-18% sales growth will come from online sales on those days. The National Retail Federation (NRF) forecasts holiday sales to rise 3.7% this year with online sales far outpacing brick-and-mortar sales. Counting on those online sales are retailers who have decided to be closed this Thanksgiving to appeal to families: Staples, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Costco, GameStop and Nordstrom.

 Source: Money.com

Ulta Beauty Posts 11.1% Fourth Quarter Growth in 2014

Ulta Beauty announced fourth quarter growth in same store sales at a very high 11.1% and e-commerce growth of 55.2%. The 11.1% same store increase was after a prior year gain of 9.2%.

The company opened 100 new stores last year and are planning another 100 new stores for 2015. It is forecasting same store sales growth of 6% to 8% and e-commerce growth of 40%.

“Ulta Beauty wrapped up a very strong year of sales and profit growth with an excellent fourth quarter, which we are proud to celebrate as our first billion dollar sales quarter,” said Ulta CEO Mary Dillon. “Our best comparable sales increase of the year was driven by accelerating traffic growth, continued strength in prestige and mass color cosmetics, a successful holiday selling season, execution of more effective marketing and CRM strategies, a double-digit comp in our salon business, and a 55% comparable sales increase in our e-commerce business.”

Source: Retailing Today

Bon Ton Announces Omnichannel Initiative After Successful Fourth Quarter

Sales at Bon Ton grew 3% in the fourth quarter, attributing its success to top-producing sales in cold weather and active apparel and home.

The company continued its growth trend with double-digit sales growth in e-commerce, prompting them to announce expanded omnichannel strategies and opening an e-commerce fulfillment center.

“As we look ahead, we are excited for continued progress on our initiatives. We are looking forward to the opening of our new e-commerce fulfillment center, which we expect will facilitate significant expansion of our shipping capacity with improved operational efficiency and support the fastest growing area of our business,” stated Kathryn Bufano, President and CEO of Bon-Ton. “Investments such as this will continue paving the way for sustainable long-term profitable growth.”

Source: Retailing Today