6 things Americans buy

Buyers come from their cocoons and want to turn it off from sweatpants, stubble and flow.

With each passing day, more Americans are getting Covid-19 vaccines. As spring temperatures warm many parts of the country, consumers book plane trips, visit the mall or watch a movie in a theater again.

According to the Department of Commerce, retail sales rose 9.8% in March as consumers wasted no time in spending their $ 1,400 incentive checks.

“Their balance sheet is in excellent, excellent shape – rolled up, ready to start and they’re starting to spend money,” JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said in a call to reporters on Wednesday. He said consumers have $ 2 billion or more in cash in their checking accounts than before the pandemic.

As buyers spend money again, they send money to the same kind of purchases and others as well. Sporting goods stores made the biggest profit in March, with 23.5% higher than the previous month, proving that outdoor and exercise equipment are still popular. On the other hand, clothing stores increased sales by 18.3% – a change that shows people are refreshing their wardrobes and going out again.

Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst at market researcher NPD Group, said the types of merchandise people buy illustrate “how we are going to spend in the short term as we move out of this whole mess.”

“It’s a good indication of where the consumer’s psyche is,” he said.

Here’s a look at some of the items that have recently gone on sale:

Skirts have been the top fly off the shelves for the past few months. According to research by Refinitiv, a financial database firm, and StyleSage, an e-commerce analytics firm, they sell at a higher rate each week than any other category. The two companies analyzed the average sold-out rates and other merchandise on about 20 retailer websites from February 28 to March 21. These retailers included large department stores such as Kohl’s and specialty clothing stores such as H&M and American Eagle.

For skirts, the average monthly sale rate for the month of March was 21% versus 11% for the previous March, although the discount levels were almost the same.

According to the companies’ analysis, customers also flocked to other spring-friendly wardrobes, including dresses and gowns.

Elizabeth Shobert, vice president of marketing and digital strategy at StyleSage, said people allow optimism to get started in their decisions. They buy clothes for an upcoming holiday or go to a restaurant with friends.

“People make plans,” she said. “There was just nothing to buy in advance – apart from the comfort equipment like sweat and what you would wear if you had been training on your Peloton for the past year. So that means a shift.”

Macy CEO Jeff Gennette said dress sales have increased as people have had opportunities again.

“You have young women who can now put a prom date on the calendar and come to our stores and websites,” he said at a virtual conference hosted by JP Morgan this week. ‘You have a mother of the bride. So, there are definitely wedding dates that you see on people’s calendars, and you see it at the bridal category. And then only people who go out more, and so you see it in comfortable day dresses. ‘

While buyers are looking for a fresh outfit, many people turn to denim.

When Levi Strauss & Co reported its earnings earlier this month, it boosted its sales and profit outlook for the first half of the year, saying it expects demand for its jeans and tees to be stronger than expected.

Levi CEO Chip Bergh told CNBC that the industry is apparently in the early stages of a new denim cycle: one where skinny jeans are out of style, and wide-legged, loose-fitting denim is in vogue. The trend is largely driven by teens and other Gen Z customers looking for ‘mom jeans’ to match with their crop tops.

American Eagle Outfitters are seeing a similar rush to denim and expect a surge in spending, with shoppers returning to the malls.

“We’re still in the pandemic, but if it’s gone we can watch the ‘Roaring 20’s,” CEO Jay Schottenstein told Jim Cramer on CNBC’s Mad Money this week.

Earlier this week, the teen retailer increased its fiscal sales outlook in the first quarter, saying revenue is now on track to $ 1 billion. Schottenstein said in a separate interview with CNBC that American Eagle’s denim business has increased a portion of the profits.

“We do not expect a 180-degree shift to formal wear,” UBS retail analyst Jay Sole said in a recent note to customers. “Denim is a perfect way for consumers to move away from items like jogging pants into something that is more cohesive yet comfortable.”

Reunion with friends and family. Planning for upcoming parties. And even an appointment for a Covid-19 vaccine. The Americans have more reasons to celebrate lately, and some pop bottles.

Sales of champagne at retailers in the U.S. rose about 103% for the four-week period ended April 3, compared to the same period a year ago, according to NielsenIQ.

This is something that the owner of well-known brands, Veuve Clicquot and Moet & Chandon, also sees. The French luxury conglomerate LVMH said on Tuesday that champagne sales had increased by 22% in the first three months of this financial year compared to the same period a year ago. Its sales in the quarter also achieved the best numbers before pandemics, with a profit of 15% compared to the first quarter of 2019.

In a conversation with investors this week, LVMH said retailers in the US and Europe have refilled bubbles, even though some restaurants and nightclubs are closed.

“Stocks were quite low at the end of last year, so there was a replenishment,” said Jean-Jacques Guiony, CFO of LVMH. But on top of that, the exhaustion in the first half of the year was extraordinarily strong. “

Champagne and sparkling wine also accounted for a larger share of sales for alcohol delivery service Drizly. In an interview, Liz Paquette, head of consumer insights, said that in March and April 2019, bubbles accounted for 7.4% of the share of total alcohol orders by Drizly. It dropped to 5.6% during the two months in 2020 and has recovered again to 8.4% so far in March and April.

“We are definitely seeing a return in this category,” she said.

Drizly, which acquired Uber for $ 1.1 billion, also noticed an evolution in other buying patterns, Paquette said. Customers buy a larger share of seasonal drinks for adults such as rose, white and seltzers instead of whiskey, red wine and lagers, a typical annual shift that did not take place in a pronounced way last year.

She said sales of liquor, candles and bitter drinks had also declined slightly, and this had also reduced the level of gifts – a reflection that customers can get ready to go back to their favorite pubs and bottles in their own order homes to share with friends.

If you’ve been wearing the same pair of sneakers in the house and hiking trails over the past few months, you are not alone. The extra activity in a single pair of shoes leads to a higher replacement rate for sneakers.

“The replenishment cycle has accelerated,” Cohen of NPD said. He said sneakers were one of the items used more during the pandemic, as well as pajamas. Plus, he added, people need new shoes after skipping the category for the pandemic mainly.

U.S. dollar sales of footwear fell 17% to a total of $ 64 billion for the twelve months ended February 2021, compared with the previous year, according to the NPD Group’s consumer tracking service.

However, shoe sales improved in March – not only increased compared to 2020, but also compared to 2019, according to NPD. With sunny and warmer weather ahead, customers are spending their incentives on new kicks and even sprouting them for seasonal and more attractive styles.

The average percentage of shoes sold out on retailers’ websites jumped from 8% in March 2020 to 22% in March 2021, according to an analysis by StyleSage.

Beth Goldstein, NPD’s industry analyst for accessories and footwear, said buyers are still pulling more than others on some types of footwear.

“While almost all types of footwear improved compared to 2020 as expected, it was the more comfortable, comfy and athletic / athletic casual styles that performed best compared to 2019, while more attractive fashion styles still struggled,” she said.

Some men are cleaning up their appearance after five-hour shadows and beards in quarantine – or at least getting a gentle hug from a friend, family member or important person.

According to the Refinitiv and StyleSage research, the best shaving products during the four weeks from 28 February to 28 March were below the prices sold higher on the retailer websites. About 3% of the shaving products were sold out on average during that period, a higher selling price than kitchen utensils and garden and patio furniture.

Beard oil and shaving creams from brands such as The Art of Shaving, owned by Procter & Gamble, and Kiehl’s, owned by L’Oreal, were among the most popular items. Retailers with an increased sale price on their sites include Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus, the research found.

“For gift and self-care purchases, people are starting to think about the outside world and what they want to look like,” said Shobert of StyleSage.

It has been a long winter for those accustomed to a short break from the cold in a sunny island resort. Spring Breakers has rekindled an increase in swimwear sales over the past few weeks, but more Americans are daring to dream about the weekend at the pool and the getaway from the beach this summer.

Macy’s Gennette recently mentioned swimwear as one of the merchandise categories that are starting to pop up, along with luggage and dresses.

Summersalt, an online swimwear and apparel brand for consumers, said sales have risen more than 850% so far in April from the same time a year ago. Like many other retailers, nearly four-year-old sales declined in the spring of last year, CEO and co-founder Lori Coulter said in an interview.

Now she said customers are eager to buy colorful swimsuits, transfer and other items that feel fresh and fun.

‘April was really the deepest of retail sales for most major retailers in 2020, including Summersalt, but what we see in 2021 is not only a return to our original growth plan for the month, but also the accelerated growth point it can only be attributed to be in the mood of the consumer, “she said.” She is ready to celebrate and that the celebration is different for each of us, but it may be the trip to the beach. It can only be: ‘We are ready for a weekend getaway’. “

“What we see are categories that actually encourage her to go around – swimsuits included – sound really good,” Coulter said. “She’s looking for pleasure.”