Restaurant Sales Jump, Retail Steadies Behind Strong Holiday Spend

Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE: FI), a leading global provider of payments and financial services technology, has published the Fiserv Small Business Index for November 2024.

“This month’s Fiserv Small Business Index showed consumer spending was strong in November,” said Jennifer LaClair, Head of Merchant Solutions at Fiserv. "With the 2024 holiday season in full swing, healthy increases to year-over-year sales combined with more than 9% growth in foot-traffic are positive signs for small businesses.”

Nationally, the seasonally adjusted Fiserv Small Business Index for November was 144, a two-point decrease from October. On a year-over-year basis, small business sales (+4.8%) and total transactions (+9.1%) grew significantly compared to 2023. Month-over-month sales (-1.6%) and transactions (+0.6%) held relatively steady following very strong growth in October.

“Holiday sales are critical for small businesses, with restaurants and retailers in particular benefitting from consumers getting out and patronizing local establishments during the final months of the year,” said Prasanna Dhore, Chief Data Officer at Fiserv. “Notably in November, food sales accelerated across both restaurant and grocery while Retail maintained the positive momentum from October, a significant increase when compared to 2023.”

Retail

Nationally, the Fiserv Small Business Index for Retail was 150, holding steady compared to October. Year-over-year sales (+5.6%) and transactions (+9.5%) grew and average ticket sizes (-3.8%) continued to decline. Year over year, the fastest-growing retail categories were Grocery (+11.1), General Merchandise (+11.0%), Clothing, Shoes and Jewelry Retailers (+7.3%), and Furniture, Electronics, and Appliances (+6.8%).

On a monthly basis, sales (-0.1%) and transactions (+0.3%) were generally flat with no change in index value compared to October; a positive sign given the significant month-over-month growth retail saw the month prior. The strongest month-over-month gains were seen in Grocery (+2.4%), Furniture, Electronics and Appliances (+2.2%), and General Merchandise (+0.6%).

Restaurants

Food Services and Drinking Places, which includes restaurants, indexed at 131 in November, a 4-point increase compared to October. Year over year, restaurants saw growth in both total sales (+8.1%) and foot traffic (+8.7%); average ticket sizes continued to decline (-1.3%) compared to 2023.

On a monthly basis, both restaurant sales (+3.1%) and transactions (+1.9%) also rose, marking a second consecutive month of strong growth.

Services

Service-based small business sales grew compared to 2023 (+5.1%) but declined compared to October of 2024 (-1.8%) as consumers shifted more dollars to restaurants and retailers.