Acadiana Business

Retail spending jumps 11%

by Leslie Turk

Retail sales in Lafayette Parish are continuing to rise in 2011, with the first three months besting 2010's first quarter by 9.62 percent.

Retail sales in Lafayette Parish are continuing to rise in 2011, with the first three months besting 2010's first quarter by 9.62 percent.

February's 8.64 percent rise in retail spending was the first sign of what might be a sizeable turnaround in retail activity, and March's 11 percent increase over March 2010 and 24 percent increase over sales a month ago is reason to believe a trend may be developing in this important economic measure.

Total retail sales in March were $475 million, compared with $382 million in February and $427 million in March a year ago.

In 2010, the parish ended up a small 0.78 percent, thanks in large part to a strong showing in December. December spending topped the $517 million mark, making it the fourth highest month on record for the parish, and total sales for the year were $4.8 billion.

Date            Total Retail Sales

Feb-10         $348,790,877

Mar-10        $427,026,295

April-10      $395,713,067

May-10       $392,280,421

Jun-10         $421,643,265

July-10        $381,829,604

Aug-10        $390,761,830

Sept-10        $420,127,826

Oct-10         $390,628,355

Nov-10        $403,997,867

Dec-10         $517,947,093

Jan-11          $369,759,200

Feb-11         $382,025,400

March-11     $474,896,101