NRF Retail Monitor Plus powered by Affinity Solutions

NRF Center for Retail Insights

NRF Retail Monitor Plus

Powered by Affinity Solutions

Welcome to NRF Retail Monitor Plus, powered by Affinity Solutions, the National Retail Federation’s free new offering exclusively for NRF members. 

The NRF Retail Monitor Plus is NRF’s latest offering from the Center for Retail & Consumer Insights, leveraging innovative and powerful new purchase data to help guide and inform our members through the ever-changing retail landscape. 

The NRF Retail Monitor Plus builds on the success of the CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor, powered by Affinity Solutions — which launched in October 2023 — by offering expanded and modernized sectors designed specifically for a retail audience. 

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Questions about the NRF Retail Monitor Plus or other data and insights featured in NRF’s CRCI? Our team is here to help.
If you’re interested in learning more about the NRF Retail Monitor Plus, want to set up a demo or learn more about exclusive offers from Affinity Solutions for NRF members, please fill out the Inquiry Form or contact the team at crci@nrf.com

Learn more about the NRF Retail Monitor Plus, powered by Affinity Solutions
 

What is the Retail Monitor Plus?

The Retail Monitor Plus, powered by Affinity Solutions, is a new free product exclusively for NRF members that offers retail professionals a deep dive into consumer spending within 14 individual retail sectors and 10 subsectors. The Retail Monitor Plus features a user-friendly data dashboard that is updated monthly with new spending data from the month prior.

All data is presented at the topline sectors and subsectors level as well as by generation and income level and includes:

  • Year-over-year spending, unadjusted by sector
  • Month-over-month spending, adjusted and unadjusted by sector
  • Year-over-year change in spending by income and generation, by sector
  • Average spending per card by demographic

Who can access the Retail Monitor Plus?

NRF members have exclusive access to the NRF Retail Monitor Plus. Log in to NRF.com to confirm that your company is a member. If you do not have a login to NRF.com, you can create one here

To learn more about NRF membership, visit our Membership page.

How do I access the Retail Monitor Plus dashboard? 


The NRF Retail Monitor Plus dashboard is available through the Retail Monitor Plus home page.  Members will have exclusive access to the Retail Monitor Plus data once logged into NRF.com. 

How often is the NRF Retail Monitor Plus data updated?

The Retail Monitor Plus dashboard is updated monthly with spending data from the month prior. For more information on how to be notified when new data is available, please contact crci@nrf.com.

Can I download or export the data?

Yes. Data from individual charts can be downloaded into an Excel file via the download button below each chart.  

Who can I contact if I need help with the dashboard?

Please email crci@nrf.com for any assistance or questions about the NRF Retail Monitor Plus. 

How is the Retail Monitor Plus different from the CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor?

While the CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor is designed to be an economic measure of aggregate retail sales, comparable to the U.S. Census data on the retail sector, the Retail Monitor Plus is designed with retail professionals in mind and uses a retailer-based approach to building the 14 retail sectors and 10 subsectors.  

Although the Retail Monitor Plus is based on similar data as the CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor, they employ several different methodological approaches and are not directly comparable.

What does the Retail Monitor Plus measure? 

The Retail Monitor Plus data tracks retail sales performance for 14 custom sectors and 10 subsectors: 

  • Year-over-year spending, unadjusted  
  • Month-over-month spending, adjusted and unadjusted 
  • Year-over-year change in spending by income and generation  
  • Average spending per card by income and generation 

What sectors and demographic details are included in the Retail Monitor Plus?

The Retail Monitor Plus includes data on 14 custom retail sectors and 10 subsectors across three income categories and five generational cohorts. This allows users to view topline changes in sales for restaurants, for example, while also diving deeper to view data on specific sectors and subsectors such as fast food, fast casual and full service. 

Full list of sectors and *subsectors:

  • Apparel and accessories 
    • Clothing

    • Jewelry  

    • Shoes and handbags 

  • Auto parts and accessories 
  • Beauty and health 
  • Beverage and grocer
    • Delivery services 
    • Grocery 
    • Liquor and beverage 
  • Department stores 
  • Discount, off-price and dollar
  • Electronics 
  • Hobby, toy and specialty 
  • Home furnishings and décor
  • Home improvement, building and garden 
  • Mass merchants and membership clubs 
  • Pet shops and supplies
  • Restaurants
    • Delivery services
    • Fast casual
    • Fast food 
    • Full service and bars
  • Sporting Goods

Full list of demographics: 

Five generations:

  • Generation Z: 1997 - 2010   
  • Millennials: 1981 - 1996   
  • Generation X: 1965 - 1980   
  • Baby Boomers: 1946 - 1964   
  • Silent Generation: Pre-1946  

Three income levels:

  • $0-$50k  
  • $50k – $100k  
  • $100k+ 

Are there sourcing requirements for use of the data?   

Yes. Any data used or pulled from the NRF Retail Monitor Plus must be sourced “NRF Retail Monitor Plus, powered by Affinity Solutions.”

How do I get access to more data on specific businesses or sectors?   

To learn more about how to access additional data, please complete our inquiry form. 

Where does the data in the Retail Monitor Plus come from?   

The NRF Retail Monitor Plus leverages Comet™, Affinity Solutions’ insights platform to analyze retail sales across the United States. Comet™ provides dynamic and accurate consumer spending insights by ingesting, segmenting and processing data from over 140 million permissioned credit and debit cards. 

All metrics referenced are calculated based on Affinity’s full comprehensive dataset and are seasonally adjusted where specified. All information produced by Affinity Solutions is aggregated and grounded in consumer permission. It does not include any personal identifiable information of an individual consumer. 

The NRF Retail Monitor Plus is designed with retail professionals in mind and uses a retailer-based approach to building the 14 retail sectors and 10 subsectors.

[Disclaimer]The Retail Monitor Plus leverages Affinity Solutions’ comprehensive data from more than 140 million credit and debit cards that tracks nearly 9 billion transactions, representing over $500 billion dollars in annual spending. All information produced by Affinity Solutions is anonymized and aggregated and does not include any personal identifiable information of an individual consumer.

The Retail Monitor Plus leverages Affinity Solutions’ comprehensive data from more than 140 million credit and debit cards that tracks nearly 9 billion transactions, representing over $500 billion dollars in annual spending. All information produced by Affinity Solutions is aggregated and grounded in consumer permission. It does not include any personal identifiable information of an individual consumer.
To learn more, visit Affinity Solutions.
CRCI is committed to innovation and progress through our content and insights.
To learn more about our methodology and special offerings, visit our inquiry page, NRF Retail Monitor Plus or email us at crci@nrf.com