Retail Industry: Industry Facts
- In June 2005 the retail industry employed 2.9 million people. This equates to one in nine, or 11%, of the total UK workforce
- UK retail sales were approximately £260billion in 2005
- The sector is expected to see the creation of 270,000 new jobs in the years leading up to 2012, with 31% of these at managerial/professional level.
- Online selling, as a proportion of total retail sales, is close to 7% in the UK.
- Research shows that by 2012 online sales will have expanded by another 320%, to be worth in excess of £60billion per annum and to represent almost 20% of all retail sales.
- Traditionally, retailers have not generally targeted the over-50s. This consumer group, however, is increasing in number, due to the ageing population and will have considerable purchasing power in the future. Retailers will need to review how they advertise their goods to capture this growing section of the market.
- There are around 450 firms that employ two million out of the three million employees in the retail sector
- The list of the biggest retailers in the world is dominated by the grocers:
Wal-Mart (USA);
Carrefour (France);
The Home Depot (USA);
METRO Group (Germany);
Tesco (UK);
Kroger (USA);
Costco (USA);
Target Corp (USA);
Koninklijke Ahold (Netherlands);
Aldi GmbH & Co (Germany).
- Britain currently sees 322,000 retail outlets welcome consumers to heir stores, and product prices have dropped every month for the last 12 months.
- A recent study shows that the average starting salary for graduates in the retail sector is £18,400. These starting salaries rise extremely quickly
