1992 CENSUS OF RETAIL TRADE Data Item Definitions =>ESTABLISHMENTS An establishment is a single physical location at which business is conducted. It is not necessarily identical with a company or enterprise, which may consist of one establishment or more. Census of retail trade figures represent a summary of reports for individual establishments rather than companies. For cases where a census report was received, separate information was obtained for each location where business was conducted. When administrative records of other Federal agencies were used instead of a census report, no information was available on the number of locations operated. Estimates of this number were derived from a sample and are provided in the retail trade report, Miscellaneous Subjects. Each retail establishment was tabulated according to the physical location at which the business was conducted. The count of establishments represents those in business at any time during 1992. File 2, "RC92A2.DBF, Ratios and Comparative Statistics" includes a comparison of the number of establishments active any time during the year versus the number in business at the end of the year. When two activities or more were carried on at a single location under a single ownership, all activities generally were grouped together as a single establishment. The entire establishment was classified on the basis of its major activity and all data for it were included in that classification. However, when distinct and separate economic activities (for which different industry classification codes were appropriate) were conducted at a single location under a single ownership, and when conditions prescribed by the SIC manual for recognizing the existence of more than one establishment were met, separate establishment reports for each of the different activities were obtained in the census. Leased departments are treated as separate establishments and are classified according to the kind of business they conduct. For example, a leased department selling shoes within a department store would be considered a separate retail establishment under the "shoe store" classification. =>FIRMS A firm is a business organization or entity consisting of one domestic establishment (location) or more under common ownership or control. All establishments of subsidiary firms are included as part of the owning or controlling firm. For the economic census, the terms "firm" and "company" are synonymous. =>SALES Sales include merchandise sold for cash or credit at retail and wholesale by establishments primarily engaged in retail trade; amounts received from customers for layaway purchases; receipts from rental or leasing of vehicles, equipment, instruments, tools, etc.; receipts for delivery, installation, maintenance, repair, alteration, storage, and other services; the total value of service contracts; and gasoline, liquor, tobacco, and other excise taxes which are paid by the manufacturer or wholesaler and passed on to the retailer. Sales are net after deductions for refunds and allowances for merchandise returned by customers. Trade-in allowances are not deducted from total sales. Total sales do not include carrying or other credit charges; sales (or other) taxes collected from customers and forwarded to taxing authorities; commissions from vending machine operators; sales and receipts of departments or concessions operated by other firms; commissions or receipts from the sale of government lottery tickets; installment payments from leasing of vehicles, equipment, instruments, tools, etc. marketed under capital, finance, or full payout leases; and nonoperating income from such sources as investments, rental or sale of real estate, etc. Sales in this report do not include retail sales made by manufacturers, wholesalers, service establishments, or other businesses whose primary activity is other than retail trade. They do include receipts other than from the sale of merchandise at retail, e.g., service receipts, sales to industrial users, and sales to other retailers, by establishments primarily engaged in retail trade. =>ANNUAL PAYROLL Payroll includes all forms of compensation such as salaries, wages, commissions, bonuses, vacation allowances, sick-leave pay, employee contributions to qualified pension plans, and the value of payments in kind (e.g., free meals and lodgings) paid during the year to all employees. Tips and gratuities received by employees from patrons and reported to employers are included. For corporations, payroll includes amounts paid to officers and executives; for unincorporated businesses, it does not include profit or other compensation of proprietors or partners. Payroll is reported before deductions for social security, income tax, insurance, union dues, etc. This definition of payroll is the same as that used by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on form 941. =>FIRST-QUARTER PAYROLL This item consists of payroll, as defined above, paid to persons employed at any time during the quarter January to March 1992. =>PAID EMPLOYEES FOR PAY PERIOD INCLUDING MARCH 12 Paid employees consist of the full- and part-time employees, including salaried officers and executives of corporations, who were on the payroll during the pay period including March 12. Included are employees on paid sick leave, paid holidays, and paid vacations; not included are proprietors and partners of unincorporated businesses. The definition of paid employees is the same as that used on IRS form 941. =>AUXILIARY ESTABLISHMENTS Each company included in this census was asked to identify and separately report auxiliary locations whose primary functions were to manage, administer, service, or support the activities of the other establishments of the company. Data presented in this report do not include auxiliary establishments. Data for auxiliaries are presented in a subsequent report issued as part of the 1992 Enterprise Statistics reports.