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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Amazon plans to crush Black Friday with ‘Prime Day’
Amazon has announced an exclusive, single-day shopping event for existing Prime members as well as those taking advantage of a free 30-day trial of the service. The e-tailing giant makes…
Is your mission statement ‘strange’?
Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella, has been reinventing the company. Now he’s announced a new mission statement that’s being called “strange.” What do you think makes a strong mission statement?
Sam’s daily deals are simply shocking
Are daily deals the answer Sam’s Club has been searching for in its efforts to gain a competitive advantage over Costco? Probably not, but Sam’s Shocking Values program provides at…
Are third parties the answer for optimizing deliveries?
Increasingly demanding consumers are turning to third-party delivery, rather than going directly through a brand or retailer, for more trusted delivery options, according to a survey from Acquity Group. Are…
Who are the most powerful women in retailing?
In May 2013, there were seven women in retail named in Forbes’ annual “Most Powerful Women” list. A year later when Forbes updated the list, the names and number of…
What is the next step for retailers on social media?
Recent analysis of more than 200 retailers across five major categories found 91 percent now have a presence on two or more social channels. But follower growth rates for the…
Do digital kids have more purchasing influence?
According to a recent survey, 16 percent of kids send online links to their parents while nine percent use social sharing sites like Pinterest or Instagram in order to influence…
Penney thinks app is perfect match for customers
When shoppers see a piece of clothing through a store window that is way out of their price range, they now have a quick way to find and buy the…
Retailers go ‘local’ at Fancy Food Show
Products organically made within 200 miles of the retail outlet and without wheat were the hit of the 2015 Summer Fancy Food Show in New York this week. Which of…
Retailers push back against proposed OT rules
The goal, according to the government, of new overtime rules that will increase the salary threshold for retail workers, is to protect employees. The unintended consequences, say retail groups, is…
Some consumers excel at predicting flops
While brands and retailers continually try to link themselves to trendsetters, a new university study has identified a unique subset of consumers — “Harbingers of Failure” — for their ability…
Retailers see green with the red, white and blue
Americans are expected to spend big as they go all red, white and blue for the Fourth of July holiday weekend and analysts are projecting good things ahead for the…
Whole Foods smacked with overcharging accusations
People expect to pay high prices when they shop at Whole Foods. What they don’t expect is for Whole Foods stores to overcharge them by claiming store packaged items weigh…
Online video: The next best thing to in-store shopping?
Retailers of all sizes are catching on to the fact that video can be the next best thing to visiting the store in terms of product education and conversion. Do…
Is brand loyalty a thing anymore?
A full 73 percent of consumer packaged goods (CPG) categories are showing a decline in their status as a must-have, even when on sale, according to Deloitte’s annual American Pantry…
Is innovation addiction creating confused consumers?
A.G. Lafley, Procter & Gamble’s CEO, believes that the continual push by retailers for more product innovation is leading to an overload of choices for shoppers. Is the mantra of…
Is overexpansion cheapening luxury brands?
With the rise of luxury shopping destinations such as Miami’s Design District, luxury brand shopping is becoming more convenient. Do you see many luxury brands reaching market saturation with their…
Is bargain hunting a family trait?
According to a study from professors at Rutgers School of Business-Camden and Pace University, “deal proneness” is passed down from generation to generation. Do you think deal hunting is a…
Are new payment technologies DOA?
Apple Pay is dead on arrival. Samsung Pay is delayed. CurrentC won’t even get that far. EMV has negative ROI. Those are just a few of the story lines of…
Robotic grocery store to open in Des Moines
While recent media attention has focused on the attempts of big technology players like Amazon to further enable retail to operate without humans at the helm, the first fully-robotic grocery…
What’s wrong with customer satisfaction surveys?
On a scale of one to 10, how satisfied are you with your company’s satisfaction surveys? Chances are you are less than satisfied, and you are not the only marketer…
