The seven-page report analyzes a wide range of retailers and their relative health and stability as indicated by announcements of store openings and closings, earnings reports, forecasts, and market activity. Groups of retailers are categorized by well-defined red, yellow, or green light designations as well as merge and detour:

Red Light: These retailers have consistent losses over a number of years, filed for bankruptcy, or are trending downward.

Yellow Light: These retailers have triggered public attention with store closures. They can reposition in the market, but are vulnerable if they misstep.

Green Light: These retailers are leading the pack, and have announced major initiatives to capitalize on their momentum.

Merge: These retailers have or are undergoing mergers, or have been acquired by other retailers or companies.

Detour: These retailers began online and are expanding into physical stores.

The report also found discount retailers continue their expansion and show surprising breadth in their target audiences. And, in the investment world, value lies in being the “early adopter.” Legacy retailers scrambling to evolve need to keep this in mind, and refrain from jumping on bandwagons and slashing store counts to stem losses and pump up returns for investors.

According to the report, though there are many retailers whose slow demise has been well documented, there are popular concepts facing pressures that can't be explained away by falling foot traffic. Classic department stores continue to revise their offerings as quick-serve restaurants and gyms can ramp up growth without taking on all the risk through franchising judiciously. (Could telling a retail story make all the difference?)

“The first quarter findings reflect the retail market as a dynamic one, subject to tremendous public scrutiny,” Crossman & Company research manager Jennifer Jackson tells GlobeSt.com. “Retailers must be savvy, forward-looking, and fearless as they do business.”

ATLANTA—As retail industry gurus head into RECon this month, a new report is shedding light on how retailers are increasingly forced to be creative in this changing environment. Retailers are seeking new partnerships, franchisees, and co-tenants, as well as exploring how to best leverage brands and e-commerce platforms.

Crossman & Company released its first quarter Southeast US Market Report Update. The title: Ranking Retail Tenant Activity: Stop, Wait, Grow…Merge?

“Our research examined a variety of retailers and measured their relative health and stability by their announcements of store openings or closings,” Crossman & Company president John Crossman tells GlobeSt.com. “We have used stoplight metaphor in the past to 'rate' retailers, and now have added other traffic signs to better capture other measures of retailers' health.”

Some struggling retailers have opted to merge with stronger ones to avoid the chopping block. The report's special section covers ongoing and completed mergers and acquisitions. (Are indoor shopping malls going extinct?)

The seven-page report analyzes a wide range of retailers and their relative health and stability as indicated by announcements of store openings and closings, earnings reports, forecasts, and market activity. Groups of retailers are categorized by well-defined red, yellow, or green light designations as well as merge and detour:

Red Light: These retailers have consistent losses over a number of years, filed for bankruptcy, or are trending downward.

Yellow Light: These retailers have triggered public attention with store closures. They can reposition in the market, but are vulnerable if they misstep.

Green Light: These retailers are leading the pack, and have announced major initiatives to capitalize on their momentum.

Merge: These retailers have or are undergoing mergers, or have been acquired by other retailers or companies.

Detour: These retailers began online and are expanding into physical stores.

The report also found discount retailers continue their expansion and show surprising breadth in their target audiences. And, in the investment world, value lies in being the “early adopter.” Legacy retailers scrambling to evolve need to keep this in mind, and refrain from jumping on bandwagons and slashing store counts to stem losses and pump up returns for investors.

According to the report, though there are many retailers whose slow demise has been well documented, there are popular concepts facing pressures that can't be explained away by falling foot traffic. Classic department stores continue to revise their offerings as quick-serve restaurants and gyms can ramp up growth without taking on all the risk through franchising judiciously. (Could telling a retail story make all the difference?)

“The first quarter findings reflect the retail market as a dynamic one, subject to tremendous public scrutiny,” Crossman & Company research manager Jennifer Jackson tells GlobeSt.com. “Retailers must be savvy, forward-looking, and fearless as they do business.”