Retail Sales Continue to Lag
- KVSH
- Aug 19
- 1 min read
No one knows for sure why, but retail sales continue to lag behind 2024 numbers for the first 5 months of 2025. The latest figures released by the Nebraska Department of revenue show retail sales in Valentine were down 1.3% compared to a year ago. It could be trickle down from the past federal administration or apprehension about the current administration. Cattle prices have been very good, but cost of production has also gone up.
Other communities of comparable size have also reported mostly down months to start 2025. In May, Ainsworth was down 5.2%, O'Neill down 4.4% and Grodon was down 8.1%.
Broken Bow saw a slight uptick in retail sales, when compared to 2024, with an increase of 4.7%.
The numbers for June will be out in September and it remains to be seen how the summer season turns out.
This information shows the importance of shopping local and supporting local businesses.
