Coronavirus Effects on Retail Discounts

As physical stores close around the world, disruption has occurred in the natural economic cycle creating uncertainty for retailers. Consumers have turned attention to online shopping, though continue to show fear in spending. To track online trends, Refintiv has partnered with StyleSage Co. to analyze retailers, brands, online trends, and products from across the globe. Notably, discount penetration and average discounts have increased, even as peak winter sales season would have passed at this time of year. “The coronavirus has imposed a hard stop on the global economy, causing retailers to ramp up discounting to move their inventory,” said Jharonne Martis, director of consumer research at Refintiv. “Tracking the discount levels as the pandemic unfolds will reveal which retailers will weather the storm better than others.” According to the company’s findings, active sportswear has experienced a slight increase in global discount assortment on sale, however, no significant change has been seen in the average discount amount. The company notes that the athleisure category has not been discounted frequently given the popularity of the trend. U.S. malls are marked as “most vulnerable” in the report having had already experienced weak traffic and sales over the past years. The company notes that Simon Property Group closed

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