The American consumer’s appetite for new products continues to be insatiable.
Both the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Retail Federation released January retail sales numbers this week that reflect continued year-over-year growth. The organizations use differing methodologies in their calculations, with the Census Bureau reporting a 13% spike versus January of last year and the NRF reporting an 8.5% gain.
“January’s numbers show that 2022 is starting very strong for consumers and retailers, especially on the heels of a record holiday season and record sales in 2021,” says NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. “We are confident that retail sales growth and overall consumer financial health can continue, and current pressures in the economy should be moderated if election-year political pressures don’t result in policy decisions that compound the challenges our economy is already facing.”
Those challenges, as noted by Shay and others, include inflation, labor shortages, continued supply chain issues, the evolution of COVID-19, and international tensions relating to Russia and China.
While firm numbers are not yet ready to report, 2022 is already looking strong for the toy industry in the first six weeks of the year.
