Back-to-School Shopping Brings a Surge in Sales

Reflecting a national trend, a number of Orange County retailers report brisk back-to-school sales in children’s clothing, particularly in sweaters, athletic shoes, casual wear and jeans.

“My August has been wonderful,” said Peggy Zamberlan, manager of Bernans, a children’s clothing store at South Coast Plaza.

Maura Eggan, director of marketing for South Coast Plaza, said sales at the huge mall have been strong over the summer months, with many stores posting double digit increases over last year.

Adaleen McHale, manager of the Miller’s Outpost clothing store at the mall, said that sales for this week are running 13% ahead of last year and that some parents have run up tabs of between $200 and $300.

Mixed Results

Nationally, the back-to-school surge helped apparel retailers and department stores post strong sales for this August over last, although some of the nation’s biggest retailers report mixed results.

Industry analysts continued to detect signs that consumers are still hesitant about making big purchases.

“We saw good sales in the apparel department, but many of the other departments show a cautious consumer,” said Walter Loeb, an analyst with Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc. “These are not boom times.”

Consumer spending accounts for about two-thirds of the country’s economic activity, and retail sales are considered a key indicator of spending trends.

Because August marks the beginning of retailers’ most critical season, sales trends take on added importance. Spending generally accelerates in mid-August as families prepare for the school year, and it continues to build through the holiday season, which usually accounts for half of the stores’ annual profits.

‘Very Good’ Month

“August was very good,” said Andy Rosenkilde, manager of the Foot Locker athletic shoe store at South Coast Plaza. “We do a ton of business during the back-to-school season.” Nike Air Jordan and Air Flight are big sellers, he said.

Catherine Frandsen, owner of Benetton, a chain that specializes in knitwear with a young look, said: “Its been a strong August, and back-to-school has definitely been part of it. I foresee September to be even stronger in terms of percentage over last year.”

At Bernans, which has items for children of all ages, Zamberlan said the clothing trends this year are in sweaters, vests and anything with gold trim. Among the traditional items, she said, “jeans are still an important resource.”

Analysts believe that the reluctance to spend on big-ticket items is because of high mortgage payments and the high price of other kinds of credit.

Low Figures for Sears

Consumer caution has hurt Sears, Roebuck & Co. of Chicago, the nation’s largest retailer, for example. Sears said its sales for August were up 2.3% overall over August of last year but that sales at stores that have been open for a year or more--figures known as same-store or comparable-store sales--fell 1.1% over .

Retailers and analysts consider same-store sales a more accurate reflection of performance than those including sales at recently opened stores.

K mart Corp., the mass merchandiser based in Troy, Mich., also reported having a disappointing August, with overall sales up 4.8% and same-store sales up 1.5%.

The better results were at stores such as J.C. Penney Co. Inc., which is based in Dallas, that emphasize apparel and therefore reflected back-to-school spending. Penney reported a 17.1% surge in sales overall for August; same-store sales increased 15.7%. Penney has been improving steadily in recent months, after having suffered a prolonged slump.

The Limited Inc. of Columbus, the nation’s largest specialty apparel retailer, reported an 11% in overall sales for August sales and a 7% increase in same-store sales.

Mixed Opinions

Many department stores also had a good month. May Co. Department Stores, which is based in St. Louis, said its overall sales rose 9.6% last month and that same-store sales rose 6.5%.

Jeffrey Feiner, an analyst with Merrill Lynch & Co., said the improvement at the apparel and department stores was better than he had expected and that the trend bodes well for retailers’ third-quarter profits.