Retail sales up 33.6% in second quarter 2021

OLYMPIA, Wash. – Dec. 7, 2021 – The second quarter of 2021 saw a sizable increase in taxable retail sales across the state over second quarter 2020, reaching $53.7 billion, thanks to strong sales in new and used automobiles and increasing construction activity.

Retail trade, a subset of all taxable retail sales in the state, also increased 27% for a total of $24.3 billion. Retail trade includes sales of items such as clothing, furniture and automobiles, but excludes other industries, such as services and construction.

Taxable retail sales are transactions subject to the retail sales tax, including sales by retailers, the construction industry, manufacturing and other sectors.

These figures are part of a quarterly report released today by the Washington State Department of Revenue. The taxable retail sales figures compare the same quarter year-to-year to equalize any seasonal effects that would influence consumer and business spending.

Here are some sectors that saw increases in taxable retail sales during the second quarter 2021 compared to the same period (April-June) in 2020:

Construction increased 38% to $10.9 billion.
Taxable retail sales reported by new and used auto dealers rose 49.7% to $4.4 billion.
Building materials, garden equipment and supplies increased 17% to $3.1 billion.
Taxable retail sales in general merchandise stores grew by 14.5% to $3.3 billion.
Apparel and Accessories sales increased by 122.5% to $1.1 billion.

The majority of sectors saw healthy second quarter taxable retail sales increases from the previous year’s second quarter.

See second quarter 2021 taxable retail sales and retail trade sales by industry.

Find out more information about taxable retail sales in:

Counties

Cities

Some highlights of 10 counties and cities in the state:

County	Taxable retail sales	Percent change	Retail trade	Percent change
King	$19.6 billion	35.7	$7.4 billion	28.1
Pierce	$ 6.0 billion	33.2	$3.1 billion	29.5
Snohomish	$ 5.1 billion	34.0	$2.7 billion	32.2
Spokane	$ 3.6 billion	30.9	$1.6 billion	24.4
Clark	$ 2.8 billion	35.7	$1.9 billion	27.7
Thurston	$ 1.9 billion	27.4	$1.0 billion	25.0
Kitsap	$ 1.6 billion	28.2	$844 million	24.1
Benton	$ 1.5 billion	38.5	$668 million	30.2
Yakima	$ 1.3 billion	25.2	$749 million	23.8
Whatcom	$ 1.4 billion	37.4	$657 million	26.6

City	Taxable retail sales	Percent change	Retail trade	Percent change
Seattle	$7.5 billion	35.8	$2.3 billion	22.6
Bellevue	$2.3 billion	55.3	$970 million	60.5
Tacoma	$1.7 billion	33.2	$870 million	33.0
Spokane City	$1.7 billion	33.0	$821 million	24.8
Vancouver	$1.5 billion	40.9	$703 million	37.2
Everett	$910 million	35.4	$440 million	30.7
Renton	$918 million	42.0	$496 million	43.0
Puyallup	$800 million	37.3	$536 million	36.2
Kennewick	$712 million	38.1	$425 million	39.3
Pasco	$515 million	21.8	$297 million	20.9

Compare taxable retail sales numbers for first quarter 2021 and previous years by checking out the Retail sales for cities and counties page.

Check Revenue’s Statistics and Reports page for additional detail about taxable retail sales.

Understanding how businesses are classified

Revenue uses business tax return data to create this quarterly report. Businesses are categorized under the U.S. Census Bureau’s classification system based on their primary taxable activity. The North American Industry Classification System – or NAICS – is the same method federal statistical agencies use for the purpose of analyzing economic data.

# # #