While watching the World Series, I laughed at how superstitious and ritualistic baseball players are. Then I realized that recruiters are the same! I often joke (although it is more a fact than funny) that we earn 90% of our fee in the last 10% of the process. Sure it starts with attracting top talent to a compelling opportunity, but the heavy lifting occurs in delivering a candidate on the first day. As much as we follow the process of testing commitment to making a change, setting expectations, dealing with houses worth less than the mortgage, bonus/equity mitigation, etc., the fact is, if even when you are ready for it, a curveball is still hard to hit. We keep fingers crossed, rub the lucky rabbits foot or put on a rally cap, even when it appears that success at hand. With that said, this has been a championship year for the San Francisco Giants and Retail Search Group!

With the budget season in full swing at many retailers and the Holidays approaching, it is easy to forget that the search for critical talent in 2013 often need to begin in late 2012. Whether your team made the postseason or watched with the rest of us, they are all assessing their talent rosters long before Spring Training. It is never too early to let me know how I may assist in your success for the future.

Click here for October 2012 National Retail Sales Results

National retailers have much to celebrate as they begin merchandise and resource allocations to support the upcoming holiday season. September national results reflect continued solid growth in our industry. With few exceptions, retail is on firm ground for a profitable quarter.

Gap posted a remarkable comeback, with comp stores up 6% for September. Even the Old Navy division posted a 10% increase. And Limited Brands continued to beat retail analysts' predictions with a 5% increase.

Successfully tapping into fashion trends with the proper timing, Bloomingdales and Macy's delivered a combined 39% increase in online sales. Nordstroms brick and mortar delivered a solid 4.4% increase, good news in any economy.

Talent requests in retail finance and merchandise planning are robust to say the least. Our team has placed many professionals in these areas during 2012 and stands ready to support your Holiday business success. We are retail.

Click here for September 2012 National Retail Sales Results

The slowest economic recovery in decades has reached a point where the consumer can delay no longer. The consumer is spending with purpose, but they are spending and helped push August national results into solidly positive ground.

An 18 store sampling by ICSC showed a 6% increase for August as compared with Wall Street’s projected 4-5%. It should also be noted that Detroit auto makers posted double-digit growth for August, including Ford with a 13% increase. Several of Ford’s models had 35% growth over prior year (NY Times).

Our recruiters continue to hear of growth plans among even the small-to-mid size retail chains. Miss this wave and you may be chasing the competition for some time. Top performing talent is pursuing the growth environments. The scenery is much better when the vehicle is moving than it is when standing still.

 

Click here for August 2012 National Retail Sales Results