| A Short Retail Industry Glossary | i |
| Introduction | 1 |
| How To Use This Book | 3 |
| Chapter 1: Major Trends Affecting the Retail Industry | 7 |
| 1) Introduction to the Retail Industry | 7 |
| 2) Wal-Mart Dominates as the World's Biggest Retailer (and now America's Biggest Grocer) | 9 |
| 3) Department Stores have Evolved into Giant Apparel, Cosmetics and Accessories Stores | 11 |
| 4) Name Changes, Buyouts and Consolidation Alter the Department Store Landscape | 13 |
| 5) Discounting and Discount Stores Evolve | 14 |
| 6) Category-Killers and Big Box Retailers Struggle to Keep Up With Discounters | 15 |
| 7) Sophistication and Success for Direct Marketers | 16 |
| 8) Rise of Showcase Stores and Super-Merchandisers | 19 |
| 9) Bricks, Clicks and Catalogs Create Synergies While Online Sales Growth Slows | 20 |
| 10) Location Based Services (LBS) and Advertising on Cellphones Take Hold | 21 |
| 11) Retail Technologies Leap Ahead | 23 |
| 12) RFID Drives Inventory Management Evolution | 24 |
| 13) Self Service Retail and Travel Technologies Take Off | 26 |
| 14) Retailers Find New Markets in China While India's Retail Industry Sees Lukewarm Growth/Russia Attracts Retail Interest | 27 |
| 15) Lifestyle Centers and Super-Regional Malls Falter/Mall Glut Anticipated | 29 |
| 16) Entertainment-Based Retailing, including Power Towns | 31 |
| 17) Shopping Center Tenants Face Slow Sales/Store Closings force Landlords to Become Creative | 31 |
| 18) Malls Morph to Stay Afloat | 32 |
| 19) Luxury Item Sales Slow | 33 |
| 20) LOHAS- Socially Conscious Consumers Create Challenges and Opportunities for Advertisers and Marketers | 33 |
| 21) How to Interpret Reports of Retail Sales | 34 |
| Chapter 2: Retail Industry Statistics | 37 |
| U.S. Retail Industry Overview | 38 |
| Exports, General Imports & Trade Balance in Goods, U.S.: 1980-2nd Quarter 2008 | 39 |
| Total U.S. Retail Sales & Annual Percent Change: 1992-2008 | 40 |
| Retail & Food Services Sales by Kind of Business, U.S.: 2002-August 2008 | 41 |
| Retail & Food Services Sales by Kind of Business, U.S.: Monthly, through August 2008 | 43 |
| Estimated Quarterly U.S. Retail Sales, Total & E-Commerce: 1st Quarter 2001-2nd Quarter 2008 | 45 |
| Total U.S. Disposable Income, Expenditures & Gross Domestic & National Product Per Capita: 1960-2008 | 46 |
| Average Annual U.S. Household Expenditures: 2001-2007 | 47 |
| Distribution of Total U.S. Annual Household Expenditures, by Major Category: 2008 (Estimates) | 48 |
| Resident Population Estimates by Age, U.S.: 2001-2010 | 49 |
| Twenty Largest Shopping Centers, U.S.: November 2007 | 50 |
| Top 20 Websites, U.S.: October 2008 | 51 |
| Top 20 Retail Websites, U.S.: November 1, 2008 | 52 |
| Employment in the Retail Industry, U.S.: 2002-September 2008 | 53 |
| Chapter 3: Important Retail Industry Contacts | 55 |
| Addresses, Telephone Numbers and Internet Sites | |
| Chapter 4: THE RETAIL 500: | |
| Who They Are and How They Were Chosen | 81 |
| Industry List, With Codes | 82 |
| Index of Rankings Within Industry Groups | 85 |
| Alphabetical Index | 98 |
| Index of Headquarters Location by U.S. State | 102 |
| Index of Non-U.S. Headquarters Location by Country | 107 |
| Index by Regions of the U.S. Where the Firms Have Locations | 108 |
| Index of Firms with Operations Outside the U.S. | 123 |
| Individual Profiles on each of THE RETAIL 500 | 127 |
| Additional Indexes | |
| Index of Hot Spots for Advancement for Women/Minorities | 622 |
| Index of Subsidiaries, Brand Names and Selected Affiliations | 624 |