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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Will competition force all grocers to offer free store pickup?
With Walmart, Target and Whole Foods all offering free grocery pick-up, should Kroger and other traditional supermarkets stop charging as well? How likely are market forces to demand that grocers…
Retailers need seasonal workers, but do workers need retailers?
Low unemployment is pushing retailers to up their offers in hopes of convincing potential temps that working the Christmas season is worth their while. Will the incentives offered by J.C…
Walmart expands test of giant automated grocery kiosk
After a test in Oklahoma City last summer, Walmart is opening a second grocery pickup kiosk at a location in Sherman, Texas that enables customer to pick up orders without…
What will a ‘new standard for green retail’ mean for Starbucks’ results?
Starbucks announced plans to have 10,000 “Greener Stores” — all powered by 100 percent renewable energy — by 2025. Do you see green store design and operations eventually becoming as important…
Are grocers shortchanging flexitarians?
As recently as a decade ago, most people eating veggie burgers were die-hard vegetarians. Today, veggie burgers are on the menu at T.G.I. Friday’s. Clearly, a lot has changed as…
Is mobile the most disruptive force in retail since online selling began?
Studies show that mobile traffic to retail sites has continued to increase as a percentage of overall visits. But in the end, consumers have primarily used desktop machines to buy…
Are ad agencies history?
A new book argues that, in a radical shift for the advertising world, the influence of traditional ad agencies is rapidly declining as former clients increasingly take more and more…
Macy’s plans for a very digital Christmas with seasonal hires
Another holiday shopping season is on the way, and Macy’s is among the retailers announcing news about the temporary talent they’re bringing on for 2018, this time pointing more resources…
Analyst: Whole Foods’ lower price claims are mostly ‘noise’
Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market have certainly gone to great lengths from a marketing and public relations standpoint to give the impression that the grocery chain has shed its “Whole…
What will it take for consumers to take out their mobile wallets?
Most adults in the U.S. believe that mobile wallets will replace physical ones by 2025, per new research, but data from another study indicates that adoption of mobile wallets remains…
Walmart’s Jet.com relaunches site, offers three-hour delivery in NYC
When Jet.com was acquired, the plan was to bring younger, more urban consumers into the Walmart fold. Recently, however, the site’s traffic has fallen off. Now, Jet has announced a…
Gap CEO says retailers not turning in-store data into action
While measuring clicks and other online data is bringing more personalized experiences to customer’s online, Art Peck, Gap Inc.’s CEO, argues that retail is far from taking advantage of in-store…
Has Boxed.com solved the melting chocolate challenge?
There’s a good reason that chocolate sales have traditionally fallen off during the summer months. Chocolate melts. That’s certainly true for chocolate being shipped for home delivery from some online…
Bonobos CEO says Walmart’s evolution mirrors Netflix
Walmart and Netflix have more in common than you might think. That’s the position of Andy Dunn, CEO and co-founder of Bonobos, the Walmart-owned men’s clothing e-tailer and operator of…
A tale of two retail real estate markets
Not to get all Dickensian, but if you’re a landlord of retail real estate, this may be the best or worst of times for you depending on the market you’re…
Will ‘drops’ yield more fashion buzz or busts?
On Sept. 4, Macy’s held its first “watch drop” as part of a plan to offer one to four exclusive, limited-edition watches every Wednesday over the next four weeks. Do…
7-Eleven gives football fandom an AR boost
Football fans stocking up on gameday Slurpees and snacks from 7-Eleven might find themselves getting sidetracked in-store thanks to a new seasonal addition to the 7-Eleven mobile app. Is in-store augmented…
It’s no more ‘burn, baby, burn’ for Burberry
Bowing to environmental groups, Burberry committed last week to cease the practice of destroying unsold products. The move comes after the fashion house admitted in its annual report in July…
Should the outdoor industry welcome selling on walmart.com?
On Aug 27, Walmart launched a Premium Outdoor Store microsite stocked with nearly 50 well-known outdoor brands. By the close of last week, a third of those brands left the…
Grab and go and yadda-yadda
Warren Thayer recently noticed enough of a pattern to suggest that it’s very challenging to stay in stock with grab-and-go, meal solutions and yadda-yadda. Do many grocers seem to face…
Will crowdsourced service help Walmart nail the last mile of grocery deliveries?
Walmart, like many of its rivals, continues to search for ways to solve the various challenges around last-mile deliveries. Its latest attempt — Spark Delivery — involves using a crowdsourced…
