• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, August 8, 2024

Overstock.com is the fastest-growing retailer in the U.S. 

The National Retail Federation released its annual ranking of retail companies that are growing the fastest.

Overstock.com, which added the online operations of Bed Bath & Beyond last year, comes in first, with 2023 sales soaring 135% to $4.54 billion. Schwarz Group, a German company whose Lidl food stores have been expanding in the U.S., comes in second, with sales rising 33% to $889 million. Fast Retailing, the Japanese parent of Uniqlo, ranks third, up 33% to $248 million in U.S. sales, followed by Primark, up 24%; Aldi, up 17%; and Lululemon, up 17%.

Newcomers Abercrombie & Fitch and Five Below come next.

“This year, we observe a resurgence of retailers that had subtly declined in previous years but have gained steady traction with new customer bases,” says Mark Mathews, executive director of research at NRF, in the announcement. “The sales numbers indicate a steady increase for these top 25 retailers, driven partly by their successful adaptation to customer needs, resulting in positive growth.”

Also notable is that many of the Hot 25 are driven by the thrill of discovery, offering consumers a treasure hunt experience that many people crave. Those include Daiso, Five Below, Aldi, Burlington and Ollie’s Bargain Outlet.

And while Overstock lands first, only two other dot coms – Chewy (No. 22) and Wine.com (No. 23) – make the list.

The NRF also released its annual ranking of the largest U.S. retailers. The list has few surprises: Walmart, Amazon, Costco, Kroger and Home Depot are still the five biggest. And except for CVS and Target switching places at Nos. 6 and 7, the entire top 20 are the same.

Walmart makes the list, topping $533 billion in U.S. sales. And 7-Eleven, No. 20, still took in $27.88 billion. Only five of the top 20 — The Home Depot, Target, Lowe’s Companies, Apple Stores / iTunes and Best Buy — saw losses, and those were minimal.

In a blog dissecting those results, David Marcotte, senior vice president of global retail and technology for Kantar, which compiles the results for the NRF, says that stability represents its own kind of news.

“These companies are huge, and they have deep pockets, the existing capital and credit to maintain their position with ease,” Marcotte says.

Walmart, Amazon, Schwarz Group, Aldi and Costco are the top five global retailers.