Summary of Findings


Data from the 1992 Census of Retail Trade show that California's
162,111 retail stores with payroll had sales totaling $224.6 billion.
In 1987, 157,760 retail stores had sales of $179.8 billion. The 1992
data represent an increase of 24.9 percent in total retail sales for
the State. 

For establishments with payroll in 1992, sales of grocery stores
accounted for 19.0 percent of the State's total sales by retailers
compared with 18.9 percent in 1987. Other leading retail kinds of
business in 1992 were new and used car dealers with 16.2 percent of
sales, department stores (including leased departments) with 8.7
percent, and gasoline service stations with 6.5 percent. 

For 1992, sales for establishments with payroll in the State averaged
$1.4 million per establishment, compared with $1.1 million in 1987. In
1992, department stores (including leased departments) averaged $21.3
million per establishment; new and used car dealers, $18.1 million;
miscellaneous general merchandise stores, $9.5 million; grocery stores,
$3.6 million; and lumber and other building materials dealers, $3.3
million. 

For retail establishments with payroll, 1992 sales per employee
averaged $110 thousand. New and used car dealers had sales per employee
of $403 thousand, which contrasts sharply with the $32 thousand per
employee average for restaurants. 

The 1992 payroll of retailers in the State amounted to $28.1 billion,
compared with $22.7 billion for 1987. Payroll as a percent of sales of
establishments with payroll averaged 12.5 percent for all retailers,
23.9 percent for retail bakeries, compared with 4.9 percent for
gasoline service stations. 

There were 2,050,594 paid employees (full- and part-time) engaged in
retail trade in the State as of mid-March 1992, compared with 2,022,068
employees in 1987. Large employers included restaurants with 384,993
employees, refreshment places with 309,129 employees, and grocery
stores with 245,814 employees.