Answer: Which may surprise you..Amazon, which is almost 3X larger than the nearest competitor, Macy’s.

Chart (courtesy of Bloomberg, hat tip to CB Insights):

How to use this question:

• Kick off a conversation about shopping and ask where students are shopping today.
• Ask students to compare online vs. physical store shopping. Do they spend differently?
• For those who shop for clothes on Amazon, what and why are they buying there? Be sure to remind the shoe shoppers that Zappo’s is owned by Amazon.
• For your investing class, this raises an interesting question: Do you think investing in the non-Amazon companies would be a good investment? What else would you want to know?
• What other questions would you have after reviewing this chart?
  • What has been the trend over the past 3-5 years?
  • How do online sales compare to physical store sales? How much more is online growing vs. physical store?

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Check out this popular video in our video library: Why are teens so brand conscious?

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.