Net Unit Growth

The year-over-year percentage change in a retailer's store count, net of closures -- new stores opened minus stores closed, as a growth rate. For discount and dollar-store chains, whose model is built on blanketing the country with thousands of small-format locations, net unit growth is a core driver of total revenue growth on top of same-store sales. It is the "more stores" lever, distinct from the "more per store" lever that comps measure. Watch for a slowing unit-growth rate at a maturing chain, and for closures rising at a struggling one, both of which signal the store-expansion runway is shortening.

Related terms

Accounts Payable · Adjusted EBITDA · Adjusted EBITDA Ex-SBC · ADR · ARPU · Average Length Of Stay

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