Kohl’s store visits were 9.6% above their recent weekday average during a four-day October promotion, a traffic gain that came alongside year-over-year declines in the retailer’s latest reported sales measures.
Placer.ai measured Kohl’s visits at 11.1% above the same-weekday baseline on both Oct. 6 and 7, the largest increases during the promotion. Across the promotion, traffic averaged 9.6% above the same-weekday mean from Aug. 31-Oct. 4, excluding Labor Day weekend. Visits were also 4.5% higher than on equivalent sale days in 2025.
The data track store visits, not transactions, and therefore do not establish how many visitors made a purchase. Placer.ai offered possible reasons for the increase: Kohl’s presence in higher-income shopping areas and its accessible prices. The firm said those factors may have helped draw shoppers while seasonal gasoline prices were high. It also noted that Kohl’s Cash earned during the promotion became redeemable Oct. 9.
Kohl’s reported that net sales and comparable sales each declined 0.9% in the quarter ended Aug. 1. Gross margin was 43%, an increase of 305 basis points from a year earlier.
In an Aug. 26 release, the company projected fiscal 2026 net and comparable sales would range from a 1.5% decline to no change. Its adjusted diluted earnings-per-share outlook was $1.80 to $2.40.
