October 2021 Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index

The Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index decelerated compared to the prior month with a deceleration in online spend more than offsetting a slight acceleration in in-store. Yo2Y spend accelerated 4pp in-store and decelerated 3pp online. Foot traffic to consumer businesses continued to grow versus 2019 for the second consecutive month, suggesting a recovery in consumer activity. YoY spend growth accelerated for most major subcategories from the previous month. Big Box retailers was one of the largest subcategories to post noteworthy MoM spend accelerations, up nearly 5pp, while Online Marketplaces decelerated 7pp.

See the Earnest Research Spend Index for September (Note: Historical numbers could vary slightly due to methodology updates.)

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*About the Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index:

The Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index (ERSI) is an alternative data-driven measure of consumer spending that tracks spend across 2,500+ large national brands in major consumer discretionary and staples subcategories. The near real-time data is derived from the credit and debit spend of millions of de-identified U.S. consumers. Advantages of using ERSI include better representation of e-commerce spend, disaggregation by geography, and online versus in-store breakouts.