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New York, 22 February 2010

Retail sales rose in January, driven by strength in discount retailers and online merchants, according to a government report Friday. The Commerce Department said total retail sales edged up 0.5% to $355.8 billion last month, compared with December's revised decline of 0.1%. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had anticipated that January sales would grow 0.3%. The year-to-year increase was more impressive. January retail sales jumped 4.7%, compared to the same month in 2009.
Sales excluding autos and auto parts rose 0.6% last month. A consensus of economists had projected ex-auto sales to rise 0.5% in January. "This is decent news considering just how bad the labor market is," said Adam York, an economist at Wells Fargo. "We had gains in most of the categories and the real strength was in general merchandise sales, so it looks like the consumers are just out there shopping again."
General merchandise store sales rose 1.5% in January, rebounding from a 1.1% drop in the prior month, and department store sales were up 0.2% after a 0.4% decline in December. Non-store sales, which include online retailers, jumped 1.6% last month, following a 2.2% increase in December.

New York, 28 December 2009

Only the day after Thanksgiving, or "Black Friday," was busier in terms of traffic and sales, at $10.66 billion, the firm said.
Sales during the full week ended Saturday, December 26 rose an estimated 8.8 percent, while traffic at U.S. stores fell 1 percent, ShopperTrak said. Still, four of the top seven traffic days in the holiday season came last week, it said.
The week was expected to take on more significance this year after a major snowstorm disrupted shopping plans for many consumers on the East coast during the final weekend before Christmas.
"Although traffic was slightly off for the week compared to last year, consumers purchased more with fewer trips driving sales and assuredly pushing retailers into the black this holiday season," ShopperTrak Co-founder Bill Martin said in a statement.
"Based on last week's performance we believe our prediction of a 1.6 percent retail sales increase with a 4.2 percent total U.S. foot traffic decline is accurate," he said.

New York, 01 November 2009

Black Friday 2009 (November 27th) is 4 weeks away, but if last year is any indication retailers will start Black Friday flavored deals already November 1st.
In 2008 Kmart launched their early Black Friday sales already on Sunday November 2nd. Other retailers followed that lead and started their Black Friday sales earlier than the year before. Most retailers take now at least the whole Thanksgiving week to offer new Black Friday deals every day.
For instance Amazon had in 2008 a Black Friday Countdown - offering a new deal each day leading up to Black Friday.
The deals do not stop on Black Friday though as they spike again on Cyber Monday and most retailers try to somehow keep up the sales momentum with new deals after Monday as well.
This year we might even see more early Black Friday sales than last year. It gets harder for consumers to predict the best time to buy as it could be that a deal is better early November than on Black Friday itself.
The most anticipated Black Friday deals from the big retailers will be revealed in Mid-November. Walmart is expected to release their Black Friday deals on or around November 23rd.

New York, 09 August 2009

With the dollar at record lows against the British pound and the euro, the United States has become a shopping mecca for Europeans.
Europeans are flocking to U.S. stores for bargain hunting because the dollar's weakness makes the U.S. look like a bargain basement to them, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The British pound hit a 14-year high against the dollar, and the euro has hovered around historic highs.
U.S. retailers are advertising overseas to grab the attention of Europeans planning their shopping trips. The Chelsea Premium Outlets, a chain that includes discount outlets in New York, Las Vegas and Chicago, is providing voucher booklets to 24 U.K. tour operators, double the number it offered last year.

New York, 14 June 2009

America is one big discount bin, thanks to a weak dollar that slid this week to another record low against the euro. As a result, tourists are spending thousands to travel to the United States to snag blockbuster bargains on everything from iPods to designer clothes and handbags.
American wares are even more of a bargain as the slowing US economy has weakened the dollar. Further, as the Federal Reserve has cut interest rates to boost the economy, the dollar has lost even more value, and global investors have realized they won't earn as much when they park their cash in greenbacks. As a result, the euro has shot up by 33 percent compared with the dollar since 2002, so Europeans who exchange 1,000 euros now get close to 1,500 US dollars. And the Canadian dollar is worth as much as the US dollar for the first time in three decades.
While some US shoppers are tightening their purse strings this holiday season amid rising gasoline prices, the slumping housing market, and the current credit crunch, the one silver lining for some merchants is the tidal wave of foreign dollars pouring into US stores.
"With Americans looking to cut back and conserve because of economic uncertainties, the holy grail this holiday-season year for retailers are the international travelers who are coming here in record numbers," said Patrick Moscaritolo, president of the Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau.

New York, 11 April 2009

A fundamental shift is going on in the consumer product world as retailers decide that less is more, the Wall Street Journal reports. Big national retailers are expected to slash selection by at least 15%, analysts say. Gone will be 30% of Kroger’s cereals, 20 of the 24 tape measures Wal-Mart sells, and so on. It’s a big curveball for manufacturers accustomed to cranking out variations on their top products.
By last year, the average retailer’s shelves held 47,000 products, up 50% from 1996. “All that go-go 1990s where we were adding items in and adding items in, and people wanted more, more, more, more choice... just didn't pay off,” said a Walgreen's executive. “People say, ‘Whoah, you’re bombarding me. Help me figure out what I need.”
During a recession unemployment rises and retailers suffer, but for some consumers an economy in crisis is good news. Since the economy has spiraled downward across the nation, people have stopped spending money in fear of a depression. This has some retailers fearing bankruptcy. 
Stores, vendors and dealers across the country are slashing prices like you've never seen before, especially on luxury items, in hopes that it will drive people in to spend some money. Retailers today are doing everything they possibly can to make ends meet even if they have to sale some items for less than the wholesale price. 
So if you still have a job and some extra cash to spare in today's economy, it's time to go shopping, Time magazine on CNN.com reports. 

New York, 22 December 2008

Holiday shoppers continued their trek to malls and big-box stores Saturday, amid early indications of slightly higher Black Friday sales to kick off the season.
The nation's retailers were watching anxiously, having already suffered significant declines this year thanks to the weakening U.S. economy.
But the first nationwide returns were positive for merchants.
ShopperTrak RCT, a retail industry research firm, said total Black Friday sales rose 3% this year, to about $10.6 billion nationwide.
Bill Martin, the firm's co-founder, said that given the headwinds facing the nation's merchants - a troubled economy, the traditional weakness in a presidential election year and the aftermath of the summer's record gas prices - the first day was pretty positive.
"Under these circumstances, to start off the season in this fashion is truly amazing and is a testament to the resiliency of the American consumer, and undeniably proves a willingness to spend," Martin said in a statement.
He credited deep discounting for a lot of the sales increases, which were fairly consistent across the nation - up 3.4% in the South, 3% in the Midwest, 2.7% in the West and 2.6% in the Northeast.

New York, 26 November 2008

 Happy Cyber Monday! If the crowds on Black Friday were any indication, it looks like consumers will be busy surfing the Web for deep discounts as well.
Sales over the Thanksgiving long weekend were surprisingly strong. The National Retail Federation estimated that consumers spent $372.57 on average, an increase from 7.2% from a year ago.
But the NRF is predicting just a 2.2% increase in holiday shopping sales this year, which would be the smallest increase since 2002. Even that forecast is considered too rosy by many other industry experts.
After all, the healthy sales on Friday may merely be yet another reflection of how weak the economy is: i.e. people rushed out to find the best bargains but may now retreat once the sales are over.
"Frankly, Black Friday serves as much more of a media spectacle than a true barometer of the relative health of the consumer and retailers. The next two weeks, when pricing reaches somewhat more normal levels, should tell the true tale," wrote Eric Beder, a retail analyst with Brean Murray Carret & Co., on Monday.

New York, 09 May 2008

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