Key stat: More than half of retailers worldwide (53%) say consumers are increasingly price-sensitive, making it the top external challenge they face in-store, according to December 2025 data from Retail Systems Research.

Beyond the chart:

• The sentiment numbers back up what retailers are already seeing. US consumer sentiment fell to a record low in April, with shoppers now expecting prices to rise 4.8% over the next year, up a full percentage point from March, per the University of Michigan.
• Meanwhile, the pressure isn't landing evenly. Higher-income households saw wages grow 5.6% year over year in March, while lower- and middle-income groups' pay rose just 1.0% and 2.0%, the widest wage-growth gap since 2015, per Bank of America customer account data.

Use this chart: Drop this in your next retail strategy or merchandising meeting to show what's keeping store operators up at night. Use the 53% to anchor a conversation about pricing strategy, and make the case for why value communication needs to be as sharp at the shelf as it is online.

Related EMARKETER reports:

• US Ecommerce Market Shares 2026 (EMARKETER subscription required)
• US Holiday 2025 Recap and 2026 Preview (EMARKETER subscription required)

Methodology: Data is from the February 2026 Retail Systems Research (RSR) report titled "The State Of The Retail Workforce." 97 retailers worldwide were surveyed online during October-December 2025.

We prepared this article with the assistance of generative AI tools and stand behind its accuracy, quality, and originality.