June 5, 2023 It’s always fun to test yourself in a multiple choice quiz with unexpected answers – so here is one for us shopkeepers. I don’t have a good way to make the correct answers hard to read, so no cheating! A. How many retail establishments (of any size) are there in the US? 100 Million 1 Million 500 Million 10 Million B. What is the median hourly wage for cashiers and retail salespeople? $8.00 $10.00 $14.00 $16.00 C. How many people are employed in those two groups (combined)? 6 million 1 million 3 million 1 billion D. What percentage of small businesses survive the first year? 80% 90% 70% 50% E. What was Amazon’s revenue for the twelve months ending June 30, 2022? $100,000 billion $10,000 billion $250,000 billion $485,000 billion F. According to the National Retail Federation, how much did retail sales (for stores of all sizes) grow in 2022? 1% 5% 7% -1% G. What is the top reasons that consumers give for shopping at an independent retailer? Supporting the local community Great customer service Saving time Product selection I hope you did well – and that you learned something too. Happy Retailing, Carol “Orange” Schroeder Answers: A (2) According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, there were 1,045,422 retail establishments in the United States in 2020. B. (3) The latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that cashiers earn $13.60 and retail salespersons $14.67. C. (1) The same survey shows 2,731,400 people in jobs as cashiers, and 3,288,230 as retail salespersons. D. (1) If your shop has made it past the first year, congratulations! About 20% do not, and only 70% make it past the second year. E. (4) You’re not just imagining that Amazon is eating up a huge portion of retail sales. F. (3) Last year’s annual retail sales grew 7%, but this year’s increase is predicted to be lower. G. (A) The majority of customers appreciate the importance of shopping locally – but the other three reasons aren’t far behind!