NRSInsights' May 2024 Retail Same-Store Sales Report

Core Insights - NRSInsights reported a 4.7% year-over-year increase in same-store sales for May 2024, indicating a positive trend in retail performance [1][13][14] - The NRS retail network consists of approximately 30,800 active terminals across independent retailers, primarily serving urban consumers [2][8] - The data reflects a significant increase in sales of high-protein products, correlating with the rising popularity of GLP-1 agonist weight loss drugs [4] Sales Performance - Same-store sales rose 4.3% for the three months ending May 31, 2024, compared to the same period in 2023 [13] - The number of items sold increased by 4.7% year-over-year, with a 2.3% rise in average transactions per store [13] - A dollar-weighted average price for the top 500 items increased by 1.6% year-over-year, marking the highest rate of price increases since November 2023 [13] Product Category Insights - Smokeless Tobacco sales are on the rise, driven by the popularity of nicotine pouches, while traditional Tobacco and Cigarette sales have seen a modest decline [3] - Sales of cold beverages have increased as the season begins, with categories like Beer, Soft Drinks, and Coconut Water showing growth [15] - The Vape category has experienced year-over-year decreases in sales, indicating a shift in consumer preferences [3] Network and Transaction Data - The NRS network processed $18.8 billion in sales through approximately 1.3 billion transactions over the twelve months ending May 31, 2024 [8] - The same-store data comparisons for May 2024 were derived from around 187 million transactions across approximately 18,000 stores [17] - NRS's same-store sales growth has outpaced the U.S. Commerce Department's retail data by an average of 3.0 percentage points over the past twelve months [17]