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Electronic shopping employment more than tripled from 2001 to 2016

November 27, 2017

The Monday after Thanksgiving in the United States is called “Cyber Monday.” On this day, many people shop online for the holiday season. Over the past 15 years, the number of electronic (online) shopping establishments increased 460 percent, from 3,625 establishments in 2001 to more than 20,000 establishments in 2016. During the same time, the number of discount department stores grew 64 percent, from 6,370 in 2001 to 10,435 in 2016. The number of warehouse clubs and supercenters increased 34 percent from 2001 to 2016, while the number of department stores, except discount, declined 16 percent.

 

 

Number of establishments in selected retail industries, 2001–16 annual averages
Year Electronic shopping Warehouse clubs and supercenters Department stores, except discount Discount department stores

2001

3,625 4,540 5,559 6,370

2002

3,787 4,483 5,626 6,518

2003

4,224 4,276 5,125 6,463

2004

5,015 4,126 5,086 6,502

2005

6,157 4,195 5,156 6,565

2006

7,310 4,327 5,055 7,066

2007

8,399 4,408 5,018 7,364

2008

9,413 4,578 4,975 8,062

2009

10,295 4,669 4,936 8,164

2010

11,157 4,662 4,852 8,249

2011

12,337 4,828 4,906 9,351

2012

13,776 4,992 4,894 9,380

2013

15,419 5,652 4,839 9,299

2014

17,144 5,827 4,758 10,188

2015

18,844 5,972 4,683 10,481

2016

20,315 6,073 4,665 10,435

Although the number of electronic shopping establishments in 2016 exceeded the number of department stores and warehouse clubs and supercenters, employment in electronic shopping remained less than employment in those other retail industries. Nevertheless, electronic shopping employment more than tripled over the past 15 years, adding nearly 178,000 jobs from 2001 to 2016.

 

 

Employment in selected retail industries, 2001–16 annual averages
Year Electronic shopping Warehouse clubs and supercenters Department stores, except discount Discount department stores

2001

53,115 748,611 855,413 908,355

2002

47,208 801,208 810,585 894,983

2003

49,326 891,396 727,150 883,319

2004

54,269 919,179 706,940 906,742

2005

62,315 1,004,982 697,920 908,322

2006

69,027 1,050,503 658,348 920,145

2007

75,930 1,092,518 637,056 962,347

2008

83,222 1,154,878 600,725 959,433

2009

87,650 1,179,488 558,622 935,826

2010

91,831 1,141,452 559,736 940,526

2011

105,880 1,185,095 567,236 988,638

2012

124,663 1,222,401 545,270 968,679

2013

142,709 1,357,064 528,830 818,188

2014

172,935 1,380,218 518,776 839,339

2015

196,608 1,431,316 494,758 858,654

2016

230,815 1,485,386 471,430 844,375

Employment in warehouse clubs and supercenters nearly doubled from 2001 to 2016, adding nearly 737,000 jobs. In 2003, warehouse club and supercenter employment surpassed employment in discount department stores and in department stores, except discount. Employment in department stores, except discount, declined 45 percent from 2001 to 2016, losing nearly 384,000 jobs. Employment also fell in discount department stores, by 7 percent from 2001 to 2016, despite the 64-percent increase in establishments.

These data are from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. For more data on establishments, employment, and wages, see the QCEW data retrieval tool.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Electronic shopping employment more than tripled from 2001 to 2016 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2017/electronic-shopping-employment-more-than-tripled-from-2001-to-2016.htm (visited October 31, 2024).

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