Retail sales fall short in first week of May

By Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 5/14/2002 12:00:00 AM

New York — With seasonal business coming up short, stymied by soggy, stormy weather in parts of the country, same-store sales moved up by 1.7 percent above year-ago levels during the first week of May but still fell short of plan, according to the Redbook Retail Sales Average.

Redbook analyst Carlin Levis said year-over-year sales had been expected to climb even higher, by 2.4 percent. On a month-over-month basis, sales fell off by 0.5 percent from April levels, compared with a modest targeted increase of 0.2 percent.

Redbook's retail sample missed its target in the first week of May, said Levis, as seasonal business disappointed some stores, "with some claiming that rainy and stormy weather put a damper on business."