Unearthing Alpha in Discount Retail: Insights from Exabel’s New Report
The discount retail sector is undergoing an intriguing transformation—driven by shifting consumer behavior, supply chain dynamics, and increasingly granular data analysis. BattleFin is proud to feature cutting-edge insights from our partner, Exabel, with its recently released “US Discount Retailers Report”, which draws on alternative data to deliver a sharper, more timely view of key players in this resilient category.
Download the full report here → “US Discount Retailers Report” by Exabel.
What Makes This Report Stand Out
Exabel's report harnesses alternative datasets—from Consumer Edge’s credit/debit transactions to Placer.ai foot-traffic metrics—to analyze three major discount retail segments:
Dollar Stores
Specialty Discount Retailers (e.g., TJX Brands)
Off‑Price Retailers
Covering approximately seven leading U.S. chains, the report applies a consistent methodology, producing comparable KPIs and performance trends across retailers. This comparative lens reveals opportune trends and strategic differentiation across the sector.
Key Highlights Worth Watching
1. Consumer Spending Power & Real-Time Trends
Tracking 110+ million credit/debit users via Consumer Edge’s dataset, the report surfaces early indicators of consumer shifts—highlighting both advantage and vulnerability across discounters.
2. Foot Traffic as a Signal
Incorporating Placer.ai data allows analysts to track in-store visits—a proxy for consumer sentiment—providing daily cadence insights that often precede publicly reported earnings .
3. Meaningful Cross-Segment Benchmarks
By analyzing Dollar, Specialty, and Off-Price segments together, the report enables investors to understand relative strength, sensitivity to inflation, and the impact of promotional strategies—key insights for portfolio construction.
Why This Matters to Investors—and to BattleFin Users
In a crowded retail landscape, data-driven visibility around consumer behavior is crucial. Exabel’s report fills the gap by offering:
🕒 Timeliness: Near real-time dashboards and transaction data, delivered weeks ahead of earnings calls.
🔍 Depth: Foot traffic and transaction counts at store-level granularity.
📊 Clarity: Aligned KPIs for apples-to-apples comparison across diverse retailers.
For BattleFin’s audience, this resource serves as a source of alpha, equipping investors to:
Detect same-store sales inflection points ahead of quarterly earnings releases.
Distinguish brand strength amid macroeconomic pressures.
Customize watchlists or alert triggers using Exabel’s data platform.
Exabel in Context: Powered by BattleFin
This report underlines the strength of Exabel’s analytics engine—and reflects the synergy since our acquisition. Backed by an additional $4 million in funding and integration into BattleFin, Exabel now offers the financial community:
A unified analytics platform, combining alternative data with machine learning tools.
A suite of live-data feeds and dashboards that shine light on sentiment shifts and consumer patterns.
Our partnership delivers insights at the speed and scale institutions demand—ensuring investors are never a step behind in evolving market narratives.
Final Takeaways
💡 Alternative data is now essential: Credit-card and foot-traffic analytics offer a lead on financials.
🧭 Discounters are a leading indicator: As consumers tighten spending, watch discount retailers for broader consumption signals.
🔁 Real-time, cross-comparable metrics: Transactional and location-based KPIs democratize consumer insight.
Ready to Dive Deeper?
Access the full Exabel US Discount Retailers Report to explore interactive visualizations, retailer-specific trends, and tactical strategies. Ideal for portfolio managers, quant teams, or any investor seeking an edge in retail analysis.
BattleFin continues to harness the power of alternative data via Exabel to bring you actionable intelligence, fast. Stay tuned for more industry reports and live-data tools designed to support your investment process.
About BattleFin & Exabel
BattleFin acquired Exabel in December 2024, merging world-class alternative data discovery with a powerful analytics platform. Together, we empower buy-side investors with tools to discover, analyze, and act on data-driven insights faster than ever.
