The retail industry has faced significant and continual challenges in the past year-plus that have impacted consumer confidence and spending, including rising inflation, an uncertain economic environment (with the threat of a recession looming), and supply chain disruptions that have led to both out-of-stocks and overstocks.
Yet despite these obstacles to success, there are many retailers achieving just that through a combination of factors, including value-driven pricing models, unique and innovative product that can't easily be found elsewhere, and exceptional customer experiences throughout the purchase journey — including across multiple channels.
With those companies in mind, Total Retail has once again produced its annual Fastest-Growing Retailers report, which ranks the top 50 companies based on year-over-year sales growth. For the 2023 installment of this report, we’ve compared 2022 fiscal year net sales vs. 2021 fiscal year net sales. While net sales don’t tell the complete story of a retail organization’s overall health, it’s certainly a critical component.
Topping the rankings is Boot Barn, which boosted its YoY sales by nearly 67 percent in its 2022 fiscal year. The lifestyle retailer of western and work-related footwear, apparel and accessories for men, women and children, also operates sheplers.com, a pure-play online western and work retailer, and countryoutfitter.com, an e-commerce site selling to customers who live a country lifestyle.
Driving that growth was Boot Barn’s ability to sell its products at full price, eschewing the discount-heavy approach that many retailers have relied on to win customers in a competitive marketplace. Not only did this result in increased sales, but also significant gains in merchandise margin and a more than tripling of earnings per share.
Here are the rest of the top five in the 2023 rankings:
- MillerKnoll (60.07 percent);
- Casey's General Store (48.76 percent);
- TravelCenters of America (47.82 percent); and
- Samsonite (42.5 percent).
A common theme seen in the top five retailers, namely Nos. 3-5, is their relationship to travel. Casey’s General Store, TravelCenters of America, and Samsonite all cater to travelers in some way. Given the boom we’ve seen in consumer travel as the world has opened up post-pandemic, perhaps these numbers shouldn’t come as a surprise.
As for No. 2 in the rankings, MillerKnoll operates in a category that saw a spike in demand during the pandemic — office furniture and home décor. The company has been able to sustain that sales momentum as we enter the post-pandemic environment.
This year's report features a data table which includes the 2022 fiscal year sales numbers for the top 50 retailers, as well as profiles of the top five companies on the list. The profiles offer insight into how these top performers have managed to grow sales across different categories through unique, innovative approaches to engaging consumers and marketing their products. There are lessons to be learned for all retailers and brands. We hope you find this data as well as the company profiles to be of value as you look to chart your organization on a similar growth trajectory.
You can download the full report here.
