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After the rollercoaster performance of the retail industry in 2025, the first quarter of 2026 would serve as a barometer for consumer sentiment, resilience and industry stability. In actuality, this past quarter has once again provided obstacles, including winter weather, geo political conflict and retail bankruptcies. However, even for discretionary categories, the outlook still remains positive amidst the uncertainty.
Foot traffic to major brick-and-mortar retail chains were up 1.5% year-over-year Q1 2026. And while some of that growth is due to somewhat easy comparisons, with discretionary industries stagnating over the past few years – especially in the first quarter of last year – the slight increase also suggests that some discretionary categories are beginning to regain traction. And while non-discretionary industries continue to outperform their general merchandise counterparts, there is still plenty to celebrate over the last three months.
The visitation trends this past quarter underscore that consumer resilience remains strong, as consumerism doesn’t take a backseat to economic uncertainty. All of the macro-economic trends point otherwise, with unemployment and layoffs rising, debt accumulating and the housing market cooling, but consumers are still shopping. Retail bifurcation continues, with value based offerings still driving much of the growth, but consumers in the U.S. can’t seem to talk themselves out of being influenced to buy.
Digging into some of the top trends and performances of the quarter, it is easier to see where consumers are putting their attention, and in turn how those categories highlight the shifts in consumer behavior.
One of the largest overall stories of the quarter was the intense winter weather that span across the majority of the country. Winter Storm Fern, which hit the eastern half of the U.S. during the last week of January, had a material impact on foot traffic across categories, in particular non-essential store trips. The week prior (January 19th) brought stock-ups and pre-emptive trips, while the following week brought temporarily shuttered stores and fewer trips in many states. While winter weather has always created disruptions for shoppers, this year felt particularly impactful with more store closures than in previous years.
In times of uncertainty, consumers crave hobbies and experiences that are celebratory and help them to feel good. Participating in or picking-up a new hobby gives consumers some agency and also allows them to connect to others in their communities or through social media. The power of the hobby began to show up on foot traffic in 2025, and the trend has only accelerated faster in the first quarter.
Michaels, Paper Source and Barnes & Noble have all grown traffic in the first quarter of this year, truly underscoring that there is still a place for discretionary spending with today’s consumer. These retailers have all succeeded in building a foundation for shoppers to see these visits as indispensable. This could be due in part to the experiences and services that these retailers offer alongside tangible products, such as stationary & invitations, author signings and readings, and framing service or classes, which help separate a visit from a simple transaction.
The consolidation of retail banners has also benefitted the major names in the hobby, gift and craft category, particularly in the case of Michaels. But, less competition in today’s retail industry doesn’t instantly signal success; these chains have had to define their reason to exist in a digital-first shopping world.
The home improvement category is another area that has reversed its 2025 trend in the first quarter. This category did benefit from favorable comparable periods, but its growth also reflects larger shifts amongst consumers.
Both Lowe’s & Home Depot posted growth in store visits in Q1 2026, a sign that traffic from professionals and do-it-yourself consumers are heading back into building and repair. This traffic increase is all the more impressive given the housing market's current uncertainty as sales slump amidst lower inventory and rising costs – which in some cases may push consumers to pull back on moving or upgrade plans.
It was anticipated that 2025 might bring about a replacement cycle for those who invested in their homes during the pandemic, whether through home improvement or decorating, but this prediction never fully materialized. Now, the positive traffic may indicate that some of that demand may have been delayed, shifting some of the consumption into 2026 as consumers are less bullish on the housing and job markets, and trying to improve what is currently in their possession.
Winter weather was also a factor in the growth for the major retailers, as consumers looked to prepare for storms in advance or outfit their homes with generators, snow removal equipment and other essentials. Looking at the week leading up to winter storm Fern, both major chains benefited from the increased stooking up.
Looking ahead to the second quarter, home improvement retail demand can be subject to volatility in the market. If geopolitical conflict continues and oil prices remain elevated, the cost of home materials could rise and cool the demand for the category once again.
One of the most watched categories as a barometer for discretionary demand has been apparel. It is a category that, in many ways, best exemplifies the current bifurcation of the retail industry based on consumer priorities. Value remains the north star of the category, while full-price chains in apparel, sporting goods and department stores struggle to find their place in the crowd. Even the luxury market has stalled over the last nine months, despite the resilience of higher-income households. Apparel continues to be the bellwether for demand.
Looking at the performance of the category in the first quarter, off-price was once again the winning sector, comping its strong performance last year. Even winter weather didn’t deter shoppers too much, as they looked to off-price chains for key items and winter gear. The frequency of visits to off-price retailers remains a key to their success; repeat visitation is higher for these chains, which helps to boost overall traffic.
Apparel chains and sporting goods retailers fared similarly, with slower traffic overall. Within these subcategories, shifting athleisure preference, value orientation and digital focus all play a role in the tepid performance. There are still some bright spots, with Gap Inc. and Victoria’s Secret improving their business.
A major headline early in the first quarter was the announced bankruptcy and restructuring of Saks Global. As part of the restructuring, the off-price based Saks Off Fifth banner has been shuttered as well as some full line Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue locations.
The luxury market has not been immune to the shift in consumer behavior over the past year, and the first quarter of this year has shown a deceleration of traffic to luxury department stores, even despite the gains made last year from brands like Bloomingdale’s and Nordstrom. The stall in traffic to this category reverses much of what happened in 2025, and it will be interesting to see if shoppers return in the coming months.
Beauty, despite some small setbacks in early 2025, continues its dominance as the category to watch for growth. The category began to rebound in the middle of last year, and traffic grew in the first quarter of 2026. Beauty has maintained its momentum through innovation, in-store experience and shifting consumer needs, as the category responds seamlessly to its shoppers.
Major chains like Ulta Beauty and Bath & Body Works led the charge in terms of performance, while smaller brands like Bluemercury faced slower traffic trends. Beauty has always been a category that thrives in economic uncertainty, and with the expansion of the store footprints over the last few years, beauty retailers have been ready for the increased attention.
As mentioned earlier, consumers still want to shop despite lower consumer sentiment, and the dopamine boost of a beauty retail visit can sustain shoppers who might otherwise be trying to limit their spend. Small indulgences are still top of mind for consumers, which certainly will continue to benefit beauty throughout the remainder of the year.
Finally, at the end of the first quarter, it was announced that digitally native footwear retailer, Allbirds, would sell for only $39 million, despite its prior valuation at $4 billion. Digitally native brands have been expanding store fleets once again, but Allbirds serves as a discretionary cautionary tale.
The footwear category has always been dominated by fashion trends; one day a brand is on fire, the next day it’s almost extinct. Allbirds followed a similar trend, with rapid retail expansion during the pre-pandemic period.
As has been the case, remaining relevant to audiences is still a challenge, even for buzz-worthy digitally native brands. Building lasting relationships with shoppers extends beyond being the product of the moment, and many of these brands are pivoting to focus on planting deeper roots.
Digitally native brands have a right to exist in discretionary retail. In many ways, they are responsible for much of the innovation that has come out of general merchandise categories over the past decade. But, there is still a lot of risk in the business of building new brands, and in the case of Allbirds, diversification that might be needed to keep shoppers coming back.
For more data-driven retail insights, visit placer.ai/anchor
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
Traffic to brick and mortar retail chains remained essentially flat in March 2026 following a period of steady year-over-year (YoY) gains – although calendar shifts may account for some of the apparent slowdown.
Saturday is typically the busiest day for in-store shopping, and March 2026 had one fewer Saturday than March 2025, which likely weighed on overall foot traffic, as average daily visits on each weekday in March 2026 were all higher than the monthly average. At the same time, the increase in average visits per weekday on most days was smaller than the YoY monthly growth in January and February – suggesting that consumer caution may have also played a role in the March traffic trends. April data should bring more clarity as to how much of the slowdown was driven by a calendar shift versus emerging consumer caution.
Meanwhile, traffic to e-commerce distribution centers skyrocketed in March – with visits rising 16.2% compared to March 2025 – perhaps helped by a different calendar shift. The shift in Easter – from April 20 in 2025 to April 5 in 2026 – likely pulled some holiday shopping into late March, boosting activity.
On the manufacturing side, foot traffic to plants remained relatively flat in March 2026, rising just 0.7% YoY nationwide.
The March ISM Manufacturing PMI showed growth in new orders and production compared to February, while employment declined – pulling foot traffic trends in opposite directions. The muted visit growth suggests facilities are maintaining operational intensity even as headcounts shrink, pointing to manufacturing activity becoming less labor-dependent, with output continuing to drive facility usage despite subdued hiring.
March’s data suggests that underlying consumer and industrial activity remains resilient, with calendar dynamics distorting headline trends rather than signaling a true slowdown. Looking ahead, as calendar effects normalize, retail and logistics activity may better reflect this underlying strength, while manufacturing continues its shift toward higher output with leaner workforces.
For more data-driven consumer insights, visit placer.ai/anchor.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
Dining closed out Q1 2026 on uneven ground. While February offered renewed momentum across segments, macroeconomic headwinds continue to influence dining behavior – putting some categories on more favorable growth trajectories than others. We dive into the data below.
Quarterly dining data underscores a clear standout. Fast casual posted a 3.1% year-over-year (YoY) increase in Q1 2026 visits – outperforming other dining formats and signaling strong demand for the segment.
The trend likely reflects the current economic climate. Fast casual’s perception of quality, at a price point still below full-service dining, appears to be resonating as consumers weigh discretionary spending.
By contrast, traffic for the QSR segment remained essentially on par with last year in Q1 2026 – a sign that LTOs and value offerings are helping maintain traffic, even as the segment faces pressure from lower-income pullback.
Lastly, full-service restaurants showed the weakest performance, with visits declining 1.4% YoY in Q1 2026 – potentially reflecting softer demand as consumers scale back on higher-cost dining occasions.
A broader view of monthly visit patterns provides additional context to these trends.
The graph below shows that between April and October 2025, QSR traffic was essentially flat or below the previous year’s levels, likely a reflection of consumer sentiment regarding inflation and a degraded value perception in fast food.
But during the same window, full-service restaurants mustered several YoY visit lifts, suggesting that higher-income consumers continued to support sit-down dining – even as more price-sensitive audiences reeled from inflation.
However, the landscape began to shift toward the end of 2025. QSR trends improved, reflecting refreshed value strategies and LTOs designed to re-engage cost-conscious diners.
At the same time, full-service performance weakened. After a sharp dip in December 2025, the segment saw only a partial recovery before declining again in March 2026 – likely influenced by one fewer Saturday compared to March 2025. But overall, this pattern suggests that sustained economic pressure may be prompting even higher-income consumers to moderate discretionary spending in recent months.
Fast casual, meanwhile, has maintained an upward growth trajectory throughout the last twelve months, reinforcing its role as a middle-ground that can succeed in dynamic economic conditions.
Examining visit patterns by day of week reveals another layer of evolving consumer dining behavior amid ongoing economic uncertainty.
Fast casual’s Q1 2026 strength was driven primarily by weekday traffic, which rose 4.7% YoY, alongside a more modest 1.3% increase on weekends. This imbalance suggests that fast casual’s momentum is tied to workweek routines – lunch breaks, quick dinners, and on-the-go meals – where demand for convenience and perceived quality intersect. In the current macroeconomic environment, these habitual visits appear more resilient than discretionary weekend outings.
QSR’s visits followed a more muted version of this pattern. Weekday visits rose 0.6%, while weekend traffic dipped slightly (-0.4%), indicating that mid-week promotions may be sustaining convenience-driven demand, but basic value may be less effective at driving weekend traffic.
Full service visits, meanwhile, declined across both weekparts, with a steeper drop on weekends (-1.9%) than weekdays (-0.6%). Weekends – when busy schedules free-up for socializing and celebrations – are a cornerstone for sit-down dining, and this gap may point to the increased vulnerability of the full-service segment as consumers reassess discretionary spend.
The data points to a dining environment increasingly defined by value – with nuance in how that value is delivered.
QSR’s steady performance underscores the importance of affordability, particularly for budget-conscious consumers, while fast casual’s growth suggests that value is increasingly defined by price, quality, and convenience that justify spend.
On the other hand, full-service restaurants, and their elevated experience, appear more exposed to value-conscious decision-making. If economic pressures persist, more discretionary, sit-down dining occasions may come under greater scrutiny from consumers.
For more dining insights, visit Placer.ai/anchor.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
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After a weather-disrupted start to the year, March delivered a clear signal that the office recovery is once again moving forward. The latest data points to a seasonal rebound alongside tightening workplace policies translating into sustained return-to-office (RTO) gains.
March 2026 marked the busiest March for office visits since the onset of COVID, with traffic just 26.5% below 2019 levels.
Part of this strength was calendar-driven, as the month included 22 working days compared to 21 in both 2019 and 2025. But even after adjusting for this difference, the underlying trend remained firmly positive. Average visits per working day were 29.8% below 2019 levels and 6.4% higher than March 2025, pointing to real and continuing momentum in the market.
On a regional basis, substantive year-over-year (YoY) gains were seen across every major market but Washington, D.C., where adjusting for working days revealed a 3.4% YoY visit gap – possibly influenced by a mid-month severe storm event that may have kept some workers home in a region relatively unaccustomed to such disruptions.
Miami and New York remained at the top of the recovery curve, with office visits exceeding 90% of pre-COVID baselines.
But the more interesting story is unfolding on the West Coast, where some of the nation’s biggest recovery laggards are making steady progress. Los Angeles recorded the strongest YoY growth of any analyzed market, supported in part by the comparison to early 2025, when the city was still reeling from January’s wildfires. San Francisco, where an AI-driven recovery remains in full swing, also continued to build momentum, with visits up 15.4% YoY. The city is steadily climbing the post-pandemic recovery rankings – after avoiding the bottom spot since September 2025, it edged up to third from last for the second month in a row.
As hybrid policies continue to tighten and companies like Stellantis join the growing list of employers requiring five-day-a-week attendance, workplace behavior is shifting slowly but surely toward more in-person work. And While office attendance is unlikely to return to pre-COVID norms, additional mandates set to take effect later this year at organizations ranging from Home Depot to the California state government point to continued gains in office utilization in the months ahead.
For more data-driven RTO analyses, follow Placer.ai/anchor.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
While artificial intelligence was the undeniable protagonist of Shoptalk Spring 2026, the discussions illuminated a landscape far more nuanced than simple automation. Retailers are currently navigating a perfect storm of behavioral shifts, ranging from the physiological impact of GLP-1 medications to the cultural resurgence of the mall driven by Gen Alpha. In response, the industry is moving away from rigid demand planning toward a model defined by extreme operational agility, where the lines between digital agents and physical storefronts are increasingly blurred – an evolution reflected in the four key takeaways from this year’s event.
The most significant evolution in the digital space is the transition from traditional e-commerce to Agentic Commerce, or "A-Commerce" (hat tip Shoptalk’s Joe Laszlo). As AI agents begin to autonomously manage discovery, price comparison, and purchasing for consumers, the retail industry must pivot to serve these non-human decision-makers. This shift has the potential to disrupt the long-standing trend of retail concentration. By lowering the cost of customer acquisition and brand formation, AI is effectively leveling the playing field, allowing niche brands to challenge established giants and potentially reversing a decade of market consolidation.
Consumer behavior is currently evolving faster than at any point in recent history. The widespread adoption of GLP-1 medications has created a "lifestyle domino effect" that stretches far beyond the pharmacy. Data shows these medications are not only shifting primary grocery destinations but are also triggering a chain reaction in discretionary spending. A significant weight loss often prompts a total wardrobe refresh, which in turn leads to increased spending on housewares as consumers feel a renewed desire to host social gatherings and showcase their updated personal aesthetic.
Simultaneously, Gen Alpha is coming of age and bringing a surprising nostalgia for the physical "mall hangout" culture. Brands are responding by leaning heavily into "recommerce" and resale markets to build long-term community engagement. In this environment, lifetime value is no longer just about the initial transaction but about fostering a continuous cycle of brand interaction through niche marketplaces and circular economies.
The physical store is not dying; it is being re-engineered to function like a high-end service environment. The industry is moving toward a "hotel check-in" model where computer vision and loyalty integrations allow retailers to identify customers the moment they cross the threshold. This level of tracking is part of a new value exchange: consumers grant access to their data in return for hyper-personalized in-store media and a frictionless shopping experience. This evolution notably aims to eliminate "security friction," such as locked display cabinets, by replacing them with seamless, background-monitoring technologies.
Behind these front-end changes lies a total re-engineering of the supply chain. The traditional discipline of demand planning, which relies on historical data, is being replaced by "demand sensing." This model uses real-time AI to create highly reactive inventory flows that can pivot instantly based on current market signals. Furthermore, the economics of fulfillment have reached a tipping point; micro-fulfillment centers are now financially viable at a threshold of just 500 orders per day. This democratization of automation allows a broader range of retailers to offer localized, rapid delivery that was once the exclusive domain of the industry's largest players.
The retail playbook is being aggressively rewritten in 2026 as the industry moves past the era of mere experimentation and into one of total operational integration. The convergence of autonomous "A-Commerce" agents, the physiological lifestyle shifts triggered by GLP-1 medications, and the unexpected cultural resurgence of the physical mall among Gen Alpha has rendered legacy forecasting models obsolete. Success in this new landscape now depends on a retailer’s ability to bridge the gap between high-tech digital convenience and hyper-personalized, frictionless physical experiences. Ultimately, the winners of this cycle will be those who replace static planning with real-time demand sensing, ensuring they remain as agile as the rapidly evolving consumers they serve.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
Despite the ongoing economic uncertainty, year-over-year (YoY) foot traffic trends to brick and mortar retail chains has been generally positive all year, with only three out of the first fourteen weeks of the year posting visit declines.
During Easter week, visits rose 5.7% compared to the week of March 31 to April 4, 2025 – the second biggest YoY increase of the year so far, following Valentine's Day week. And while some of this lift likely reflects calendar shifts, as Easter fell later in April in 2025, it also underscores consumers’ continued willingness to shop – especially for special occasions – despite broader headwinds.
Indeed, AI-powered location intelligence also shows a 1.9% increase in traffic compared to Easter Week 2025, and a 7.4% lift compared to the year-to-date weekly retail traffic average – highlighting current consumer resilience.
Easter generated increases in retail foot traffic across most of the country, but the strongest lift was in the Southeast, as can be seen on the map below. The region’s outsized performance likely reflects a combination of factors, including stronger cultural emphasis on Easter-related gatherings and traditions, favorable spring weather that supports in-store shopping, and a higher reliance on brick-and-mortar retail formats.
Retail traffic data for Easter Week 2026 suggests that retail traffic in 2026 is being supported by stable underlying demand, with holidays like Easter acting as accelerators rather than compensating for weakness. At the same time, the Southeast’s outperformance reinforces the need for regionally tailored strategies, as the ability to convert seasonal demand into store visits varies significantly across markets.
For more data-driven retail insights, visit placer.ai/anchor
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
This report leverages location intelligence data to analyze the auto dealership market in the United States. By looking at visit trends to branded showrooms, used car lots, and mixed inventory dealerships – and analyzing the types of visitors that visit each category – this white paper sheds light on the state of car dealership space in 2023.
Prior to the pandemic and throughout most of 2020, visits to both car brand and used-only dealerships followed relatively similar trends. But the two categories began to diverge in early 2021.
Visits to car brand dealerships briefly returned to pre-pandemic levels in mid-2021, but traffic fell consistently in the second half of the year as supply-chain issues drove consistent price increases. So despite the brief mid-year bump, 2021 ended with overall new car sales – as well as overall foot traffic to car brand dealerships – below 2019 levels. Visits continued falling in 2022 as low inventory and high prices hampered growth.
Meanwhile, although the price for used cars rose even more (the average price for a new and used car was up 12.1% and 27.1% YoY, respectively, in September 2021), used cars still remained, on average, more affordable than new ones. So with rising demand for alternatives to public transportation – and with new cars now beyond the reach of many consumers – the used car market took off and visits to used car dealerships skyrocketed for much of 2021 and into 2022. But in the second half of last year, as gas prices remained elevated – tacking an additional cost onto operating a vehicle – visits to used car dealerships began falling dramatically.
Now, the price of both used and new cars has finally begun falling slightly. Foot traffic data indicates that the price drops appear to be impacting the two markets differently. So far this year, sales and visits to dealerships of pre-owned vehicles have slowed, while new car sales grew – perhaps due to the more significant pent-up demand in the new car market. The ongoing inflation, which has had a stronger impact on lower-income households, may also be somewhat inhibiting used-car dealership visit growth. At the same time, foot traffic to used car dealerships did remain close to or slightly above 2019 levels for most of 2023, while visits to branded dealerships were significantly lower year-over-four-years.
The situation remains dynamic – with some reports of prices creeping back up – so the auto dealership landscape may well continue to shift going into 2024.
With car prices soaring, the demand for pre-owned vehicles has grown substantially. Analyzing the trade area composition of leading dealerships that sell used cars reveals the wide spectrum of consumers in this market.
Dealerships carrying a mixed inventory of both new and used vehicles seem to attract relatively high-income consumers. Using the STI: Popstats 2022 data set to analyze the trade areas of Penske Automotive, AutoNation, and Lithia Auto Stores – which all sell used and new cars – reveals that the HHI in the three dealerships’ trade areas is higher than the nationwide median. Differences did emerge within the trade areas of the mixed inventory car dealerships, but the range was relatively narrow – between $77.5K to $84.5K trade area median HHI.
Meanwhile, the dealerships selling exclusively used cars – DriveTime, Carvana, and CarMax – exhibited a much wider range of trade area median HHIs. CarMax, the largest used-only car dealership in the United States, had a yearly median HHI of $75.9K in its trade area – just slightly below the median HHI for mixed inventory dealerships Lithia Auto Stores and AutoNation and above the nationwide median of $69.5K. Carvana, a used car dealership that operates according to a Buy Online, Pick Up in Store (BOPIS) model, served an audience with a median HHI of $69.1K – more or less in-line with the nationwide median. And DriveTime’s trade areas have a median HHI of $57.6K – significantly below the nationwide median.
The variance in HHI among the audiences of the different used-only car dealerships may reflect the wide variety of offerings within the used-car market – from virtually new luxury vehicles to basic sedans with 150k+ miles on the odometer.
Visits to car brands nationwide between January and September 2023 dipped 0.9% YoY, although several outliers reveal the potential for success in the space even during times of economic headwinds.
Visits to Tesla’s dealerships have skyrocketed recently, perhaps thanks to the company’s frequent price cuts over the past year – between September 2022 and 2023, the average price for a new Tesla fell by 24.7%. And with the company’s network of Superchargers gearing up to serve non-Tesla Electric Vehicles (EVs), Tesla is finding room for growth beyond its already successful core EV manufacturing business and positioning itself for a strong 2024.
Japan-based Mazda used the pandemic as an opportunity to strengthen its standing among U.S. consumers, and the company is now reaping the fruits of its labor as visits rise YoY. Porsche, the winner of U.S New & World Report Best Luxury Car Brand for 2023, also outperformed the wider car dealership sector. Kia – owned in part by Hyundai – and Hyundai both saw their foot traffic increase YoY as well, thanks in part to the popularity of their SUV models.
Analyzing dealerships on a national level can help car manufacturers make macro-level decisions on marketing, product design, and brick-and-mortar fleet configurations. But diving deeper into the unique characteristics of each dealership’s trade area on a state level reveals differences that can serve brands looking to optimize their offerings for their local audience.
For example, analyzing the share of households with children in the trade areas of four car brand dealership chains in four different states reveals significant variation across the regional markets.
Nationwide, Tesla served a larger share of households with children than Kia, Ford, or Land Rover. But focusing on California shows that in the Golden State, Kia’s trade area population included the largest share of this segment than the other three brands, while Land Rover led this segment in Illinois. Meanwhile, Ford served the smallest share of households with children on a nationwide basis – but although the trend held in Illinois and Pennsylvania, California Ford dealerships served more households with children than either Tesla or Land Rover.
Leveraging location intelligence to analyze car dealerships adds a layer of consumer insights to industry provided sales numbers. Visit patterns and audience demographics reveal how foot traffic to used-car lots, mixed inventory dealerships, and manufacturers’ showrooms change over time and who visits these businesses on a national or regional level. These insights allow auto industry stakeholders to assess current demand, predict future trends, and keep a finger on the pulse of car-purchasing habits in the United States.
