Article

97. Gap 96. Safeway 95. Macy's

November 12, 2009

97. Gap

In 1969, Don Fisher couldn't find a pair of jeans he liked, so he created his own, and the Gap brand was born. Though its same-store sales fell 12 percent in February, parent company Gap Inc. has had a good year overall. In addition to the largest U.S. specialty clothing retailer, the company owns Old Navy, Banana Republic and online shoe emporium Piperlime. Despite market conditions, Gap expanded to Mexico and opened its 100th franchise store abroad in 2008, and in February of this year signed a franchise agreement to expand into Israel.

96. Safeway

Despite rising food prices, the American Consumer Satisfaction Index showed consumer satisfaction with grocery stores remained steady over the last year, and this California-based retailer is no exception. With a 7 percent profit jump for 2008's fourth quarter and an impressive weekly shopper count of 44 million, Safeway specifically has seen rising satisfaction. Add those numbers to the brownie points the company surely scored with consumers when its CEO called out food manufacturers for refusing to lower prices, and it seems to be sitting pretty.

95. Macy's

Its 150th birthday last October has been one of the only bright spots for this department store standby over the past year. On the heels of the company's decision to close 11 stores in January came news of 7,000 job cuts and an 8.5 percent drop in same-store sales for February. The retailer has been quietly concentrating on an improved and integrated customer experience, including a revamped Web site that now features product reviews, a tool to assist visually impaired shoppers and a "Find It In-Store" service.