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Limited Service Restaurants: Domino's results show how competitive intensity is eating into profitability. Got to be really hard on the little guys.

Limited Service Restaurants: Domino’s results show how competitive intensity is eating into profitability. Got to be really hard on the little guys.

Domino’s reported a much improved quarter vs. Q1 with US comp-sales increasing by +3.4%, driven by mix (Parmesan Stuffed Crust Pizza), positive pricing (COGS increased +4.8%), and comp-transactions (+2.0%). Carryout comp-sales increased +5.8% and delivery, +1.5% with more households choosing the cheaper carryout option. The Parmesan Stuffed is a new item and CEO Russell Weiner said, “Customer praise for this product has been significantly higher than any of our recent product launches.
2 minutes
Big-Ticket Leisure Activity – Softer this summer

Big-Ticket Leisure Activity – Softer this summer

The Fed’s latest Beige Book was released last week; the Atlanta district’s comments read, “Travel and tourism activity grew modestly, on balance, since the previous report [early June]… Group bookings for some properties did not meet expectations as international travel to the U.S. from Canada, Asia, and Europe, continued to slow. Demand for cruises rebounded from lows earlier this year.” These observations align with our story that Universal’s new Epic Universe theme park hasn’t yet lifted the Orlando Market.
2 minutes
Frito-Lay on the upswing as convenience store visits improve

Frito-Lay on the upswing as convenience store visits improve

We wrote an insights piece two weeks ago about the improving traffic into convenience and gas station stores (C&G), specifically from the pump pad into the store, and noted that it was a favorable development for CPG suppliers as well as the major operators, Casey’s Stores, Chevron, 7-Eleven, and Circle-K, etc. Today brought Pepsi’s Q2 earnings results, and lo and behold, the trend improved for Frito-Lay’s savory snacks business (Doritos, Tostitos, Lay’s, Fritos, etc.
2 minutes
Target’s Expansion Into Growth Mode Despite the Noise

Target’s Expansion Into Growth Mode Despite the Noise

Two months ago, we reviewed Target’s fiscal 1st quarter results, and before that, the news that they would be accelerating the store opening pace to 30 per year. Since then, the false narrative that boycotts following DEI policy changes were leading to severe traffic declines, along with growing media scrutiny of management’s decisions, including from CNBC with the title – **“Lost their identity: Why Target is struggling to win over shoppers and investors.
5 minutes
Albertsons Companies – More price investments ahead to rebuild share-of-stomach

Albertsons Companies – More price investments ahead to rebuild share-of-stomach

Albertsons Companies reported a +2.8% comp-sales increase for its fiscal quarter (June 14th end) driven by pharmacy (GLP-1 drugs) and e-commerce (3P delivery+curbside). Advan estimates that traffic was up modestly at Safeway and Albertsons. Deconstructing all of these figures implies a -3.6% decline in store units-per-transaction (UPTs), assuming that they passed through the +2.3% food-at-home inflation (CPI) in the period. The decline in UPTs is the natural result of the strong GLP usage (fewer calories eaten) and increased frugality.
3 minutes
How Municipalities Can Supercharge Economic Growth with Advan’s Location Intelligence

How Municipalities Can Supercharge Economic Growth with Advan’s Location Intelligence

In today’s rapidly evolving urban landscape, civic leaders face growing pressure to make smarter decisions backed by real-world data. Whether you’re planning infrastructure, attracting new businesses, or improving public services, understanding how people move and spend across your city is key. Advan empowers municipalities with powerful foot traffic and SpendView data - giving local governments the visibility they need to plan, prioritize, and prove impact. Why It Matters Precision Beyond Surveys: Advan geofences over 150MM million points of interest and observes mobility patterns across a panel that represents roughly 15% of U.
3 minutes
Amazon Prime Day 2025 – Up nicely

Amazon Prime Day 2025 – Up nicely

The chart below shows trailing 7-day visits to 500 large Amazon fulfillment centers in the US, indexed to two days prior to the event in 2024 and 2025. Obviously, it’s the days trailing the event that are the busiest, given that’s when the orders are packed and put into delivery-station trucks. As such, it’s 2025’s large increases in Day-4, T+1, and T+2 that are really impressive. Why such a consumer response?
2 minutes
Specialty Grocery – Where the momentum lies

Specialty Grocery – Where the momentum lies

In light of our Tuesday article on the slower pace for retail sales in June and the tough earnings report by Conagra on Thursday, we wanted to delve into how “advantaged” grocers were doing. (Conagra reported a segment profit decline of -10% for its May-end quarter and profits for the next twelve-month period are expected to decline another 20%-ish.) As the chart below demonstrates, these specialty grocers slowed in mid-June as well.
4 minutes
Athleisure – More slowdown resulting from tariff discombobulation and other matters?

Athleisure – More slowdown resulting from tariff discombobulation and other matters?

Tuesday’s article previewing June retail sales, along with some hypotheses for why the month appears to be a deceleration from May’s pace, solicited some questions about the athleisure category. For athleisure, there was also a slowdown starting June 12th, similar to what we shared yesterday. Vuori’s deceleration is most abrupt. Lululemon and Alo Yoga have drifted back to their March pace; perhaps the bump they experienced in April and May was pull-forward with consumers securing coveted items before tariffed goods hit the shelves.
3 minutes
Previewing June Retail Sales – Surprisingly soft and macro in nature

Previewing June Retail Sales – Surprisingly soft and macro in nature

We forecasted in our review of May retail sales that June’s pace would likely be stronger than May’s; well being a forecaster, we know that we are going to be wrong some times and based on Advan’s foot traffic and transaction data, June looks to be softer AND NOT stronger. (Recall, the retail calendar puts July 5th as the end of the month vs. July 6th last year.) The first half of the period was stronger than the second half; the second half aligned with the extreme temperatures in the Great Lakes Region and the Northeast.
3 minutes