Retailers: Statistics

According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), the retail industry is the largest employer in the United States with more than 25 million employees working in a variety of store formats. Retail establishments range from small specialty shops employing a few workers, to giant department stores such as Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s with tens of thousands of stores across the United States and hundreds of employees on staff at each location. According to the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), an estimated 110,000 to 115,000 new retail stores opened for business in 2008.