Summary of Findings


Data from the 1992 Census of Retail Trade show that Wisconsin's
31,955 retail stores with payroll had sales totaling $38.4 billion. In
1987, 32,164 retail stores had sales of $27.8 billion. The 1992 data
represent an increase of 37.9 percent in total retail sales for the
State. 

For establishments with payroll in 1992, sales of new and used car
dealers accounted for 18.2 percent of the State's total sales by
retailers compared with 18.1 percent in 1987. Other leading retail
kinds of business in 1992 were grocery stores with 17.2 percent of
sales, department stores (including leased departments) with 10.4
percent, and gasoline service stations with 8.3 percent. 

For 1992, sales for establishments with payroll in the State averaged
$1.2 million per establishment, compared with $864 thousand in 1987. In
1992, department stores (including leased departments) averaged $13.8
million per establishment; new and used car dealers, $11.0 million;
catalog and mail-order houses, $9.1 million; miscellaneous general
merchandise stores, $4.3 million; and grocery stores, $3.7 million. 

For retail establishments with payroll, 1992 sales per employee
averaged $95 thousand. New and used car dealers had sales per employee
of $358 thousand, which contrasts sharply with the $23 thousand per
employee average for restaurants. 

The 1992 payroll of retailers in the State amounted to $4.3 billion,
compared with $3.2 billion for 1987. Payroll as a percent of sales of
establishments with payroll averaged 11.3 percent for all retailers,
30.5 percent for retail bakeries, compared with 5.8 percent for
gasoline service stations. 

There were 405,026 paid employees (full- and part-time) engaged in
retail trade in the State as of mid-March 1992, compared with 372,205
employees in 1987. Large employers included restaurants with 73,116
employees, grocery stores with 54,090 employees, and refreshment places
with 51,078 employees.