...Continued Channel Leakage: Fitch Ratings expects the department store industry's sales to remain on a secular decline after reaching a 20-year trough level in 2013. This is in spite of sales of department store-type merchandise -- mainly apparel, accessories, footwear and home furnishings -- still growing in the low single-digit range annually. Online Driving Sales Growth: Online shopping is becoming an increasing threat for department stores and other brick-and-mortar specialty clothing, accessories and home furnishing retailers, and is capturing a significant portion of the growth in these categories. Fitch views companies that have been actively investing in and managing both physical store networks and online platforms as strongly positioned to generate incremental sales and gain market share. Outperformers Sustaining Top-Line above 2%: Fitch estimates department stores would need to generate top-line growth of 2% or above to protect their market shares. Macy's, Inc.; Nordstrom, Inc.;...
