Kohl's Corporation: Positioning Itself for Success

Despite the bleak expectations for the US retail sector in 2009 overall, firms that position themselves well will be able to succeed. An example of such a firm appears to be the department store retailer Kohl's Corporation (NYSE: KSS).

MSSI statistics from this month show that average monthly spending among Geezeo users has indeed been affected by these adverse conditions, decreasing by over 13% from November '08 through February. Including so far this March, however, spending is only down by 3.70% and actually up by 14.51% since January '08.

A recent report, "Exclusive brands, cost cuts to help Kohl's: JP Morgan", discusses that the firm's management has tried to limit expenses, while still sticking to the long-term growth of the company.

Retail firms like Kohl's need to keep tight oversight on their costs and still keep their prices low to satisfy customers. Kohl's has taken this notion to heart and made deals that keep their products current. So far this March, it appears that customers are still shopping less frequently at the retailer's locations compared with the same time last year, but these figures are definitely turning around.

This month, Geezeo users that shop at Kohl's are averaging a total of $89.34 spent, which is the fourth highest monthly total in the last twelve with another weekend still to pass. Kohl's may be on to something here.

This data was compiled by the Geezeo Main Street Spending Index (MSSI)).

Comments

[Rikk:]

Data tell's it all!!! Those typical analyst out there needs to realize and gather their information before downgrading /upgrading any companies. Kohl's will overcome the retail sector and surpass J.C.Penney's!!

Mar 30 11:38 AM

[Mark Scheidel:]

Consumer goods manufacturing companies which traditionally controlled the supply chain, are facing a squeeze with increased commodity costs and lowered consumer spend driving a double whammy into their operating margins. The time is ripe for retailers to wrest back a controlling influence over the supply chain.
The upper end of the market is doing badly as well. And the credit squeeze is still not over, and this impacts everyone - even though there are some signs of the cloud lifting
But there are certainly pockets of profit opportunities - and retailers that are smart enough to realize it will benefit from it in the long run.
The store brands tug-of-war will intensify not just between retailer-manufacturer but between retailer-retailer as well, especially in categories where store brands occupy a significant mind share.
Rather than use pricing as the sole lever to make inroads into manufacturer market share, retailers need to turn to offering and value they are offering customers in order to make these gains more permanent. A significant tool that can be employed in this regard is Predictive Analysis.
Leveraging predictive analytics to determine events before they have occured - such as predicting how consumers are going to behave in the future - helps companies alter marketing strategies to increase their ROI. Tune in to this podcast to know more:
www.wns.com/Insights/P...

Apr 01 07:25 AM