Apple stores lead with the highest sales per square foot
According to RetailSails, a firm that tracks the US consumer and retail industries, Apple's retail stores are the most profitable stores per square foot out of any other US retailer. As a matter of fact, Apple stores have over twice the sales per square foot of the next closest on the list, Tiffany & Co.
The RetailSails 2012 Chain Store Productivity Guide profiled 189 companies in the US which operated retail stores and compiled their results by measuring the trailing 12 months and 5 years of historical sales by channel, brand and region. Apple stores came out on top with $6,050 of sales for every square foot of retail space. Next in line was Tiffany & Co with $3,017 of sales for every square foot of retail space (over 50 percent less than Apple). Number three was Lululemon atheletica stores with $1,936 of sales for every square foot of retail space.
Last year RetailSails said Apple earned a little over $5,600 per square foot.
Besides having an obvious financial impact of selling more product per square foot, sales by area can also have a noticeable effect of how much a company pays for rent. Many malls and shopping districts decide how much to charge a company for leasing the retail space, in part, due to sales. Increased sales per square foot can lead to higher rents. Of course this would vary from location to location and given Apple's retail clout, it's perfectly reasonable to assume that it wouldn't be locked down to rent based on square footage alone.
[via Forbes]
