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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Is monitoring employee data the right move for retailers?
As consumers use Fitbits and other devices to track their own biometrics and seek improvements in their personal lives, Employers could also gain insights to help support happier and healthier…
Target designing stores as go-to place for smart home tech
Last summer Target opened Open House in San Francisco, focusing on smart home technology. Now the company is launching a pilot of Connected Living, an area within one of the…
Lyft and Uber look to deliver same-day edge for Walmart
Walmart has announced plans to run pilots with the third-party ride-sharing services, Lyft and Uber to deliver online grocery orders to customers’ homes on the same day they are placed…
Will shoppers want to interact with AI ads?
The Weather Company, acquired by IBM in January, will begin rolling out digital ads that people can communicate with this fall, powered by IBM Watson’s artificial intelligence. Will the AI…
BOPIS needs more work
A mystery shopper study of BOPIS found that 90 percent of retailers had the online-ordered product ready and waiting at the store at the promised pick-up time. But shortcomings around…
How can new product forecasting be improved?
According to a study from Martec International and Relex, the biggest challenge for North American retailers regarding forecasting is around new products. How much will retailers continue to rely on…
Will drones make Walmart’s DCs hum?
Walmart plans to test the use of drones in distribution centers to help deliver real-time inventory data to employees and move products around and out of facilities in the fastest,…
Target kicks mobile pickup app to the curb
Hopes were high back in 2014 when Target launched a pilot of the Curbside mobile app in San Francisco. Yet the trial failed to produce the results Target was looking…
Getting past retail’s gatekeepers
Thanks to advances in technology and data analytics, retailers no longer need layers of decision-making, and most are determined to speed up the process anyway. Do you feel it’s become…
Amazon Prime’s retention rates are just sick
According to an analysis of Amazon Prime memberships, 73 percent of people who take advantage of a free 30-day trial membership are likely to pay the $99 needed for an…
Will Target find its identity with a department store layout?
Over the past year-and-a-half, Target has made an attempt to carve out a distinct, new identity. But the chain’s most fundamental change may now be on the way, as the…
Do Millennials goof off too much on the job?
Employers in the Lone Star State are unhappy with new U.S. Department of Labor regulations that will require businesses to pay overtime to salaried employees who meet wage and hourly…
SpartanNash hops on the Amazon supply chain bandwagon
SpartanNash’s share price jumped nearly six percent yesterday as news spread that the company is supplying Amazon in the e-tailer’s push to become a major force in the grocery business…
Will food save the mall?
With the foodie culture currently eclipsing any fashion craze, many malls are revamping their food courts to more closely resemble trendy urban food halls as a way to drive traffic…
Mobile: It comes down to one person
For all retailers, regardless of size or product sold, the absolute best way to get past their extensive list of roadblocks to capitalizing on mobile technologies is to elect one…
Should Gap sell on Amazon?
In answer to a shareholder’s question at its annual meeting, Art Peck, Gap Inc.’s CEO, said the retailer would be open to selling its merchandise on Amazon or other third…
How reliant are malls on department store anchors?
With another round of closings for Macy’s, Sears, Penney’s and Kohl’s, many malls will again be scrambling to fill dark anchors. Are department store anchors essential to malls? Do you…
Public.Factory’s co-retailing concept gives start-ups a leg up
With the opening last fall of its first location at the SoHo Grand hotel in NYC, Public.Factory declared itself to be the first company taking the sharing economy to the…
Should Sears sell its Craftsman, DieHard and Kenmore brands?
Sears’ long downward spiral continues. Following another quarter of disappointing sales, the company has gone public about potentially making its few remaining valuable brand assets either more available in stores…
Tips for more productive staff meetings
BrainTrust panelist Doug Fleener is a big proponent of regular staff meetings. Whether they’re weekly or monthly, regularly getting the entire team together is extremely productive — if, that is,…
Does Walmart need fitting rooms?
According to a report by The Chronicle Herald, Walmart is reducing the space given to or removing fitting rooms from select stores in parts of Canada to see if the…
