Business improving, if slowly

For retailers everywhere, 2009 was not the best of years. Doing business in North and South America was tough, too. Unemployment was high; home values plummeted; many people lost their homes. Even weather was a problem. 2010 seems to hold some hope, though any major improvement seems destined to take place later in the year. The situation must be seen individually in North and South America. First North America. Both Canada and the United States have suffered high unemployment, the US rate reaching slightly above 10 per cent and hovering near that mark during the first quarter of 2010. For hardlines retailers, this meant the end of big project sales and major remodeling expenditures. It resulted, however, in increased sales of repairing products. People out of work had the time to make minor fix-ups and maybe spend a wee bit on paint. The world's two largest DIY and home centre chains, Home Depot and Lowe's, reported sales declines last year of 7 to nearly 9 per cent, but reported things looking much brighter during the first quarter of 2010. Traffic was improving and customers were spending a bit more freely. Quality and value are the consumers' watchwords these days. Every dollar spent must deliver value. There is a tendency to downgrade pricing, but still demand quality. In many cases, this means private brand products have more appeal. Mexico and Central America faced most of the same problems, in some cases more severe than their two larger northern neighbours. There are some small home centres in Guatemala and Costa Rica, which operate smaller stores than in the United States. Home Depot and now Lowe's are in Mexico. South America: Large-chain retailing is not as firmly entrenched in Latin America, though there are several DIY and home centre chains in Chile, Brazil and Argentina. Local independent hardware stores, supplied by local wholesalers, are still a most important retailing factor in most Latin American countries. The stores are smaller than those in America or Canada, and carry a narrower inventory. They rely less on self-service and provide the kinds of personal assistance often lacking elsewhere in the world. Sales staff service still reigns. Chile, of course, because of its recent devastating earthquake, is going to need billions of dollars of rebuilding, so sales of hardware products and building materials should be good for at least a year, maybe longer. Brazil's economy is one of the stronger ones in the world and is expected to grow…