Reasons to Read

Discover which retailers are outperforming—and underdelivering—as value, digital, and specialty strategies reshape earnings momentum.

Read this report to discover answers to these and other questions:

• Which retailers led 3Q25 growth, and how did Alibaba and specialty apparel outperform amid macro uncertainty?
• What drove Best Buy’s return to growth, and how is electronics demand shifting in response to consumer sentiment and tech cycles?
• Why did Kohl’s and Petco underperform, and what do their revised outlooks reveal about consumer spending pressure?
• How is Alibaba leaning into AI and cloud despite short-term profitability volatility, and what signals is it sending about future e-commerce strategy?
• What are the common strategies among winning specialty apparel retailers like Abercrombie, Burlington, DICK’S, and Urban Outfitters?

Companies mentioned in this report include: Abercrombie & Fitch, Alibaba, Best Buy, Bosideng, Burlington Stores, DICK’S Sporting Goods, Kohl’s, Petco, Urban Outfitters, and many others across apparel, electronics, e-commerce, and general merchandise sectors.

Data in this report include: US retail sales growth and inferred real growth; company-level revenue, comps, and EPS vs. consensus; category performance by region and channel; digital traffic and store expansion data.