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The RetailWire Christmas Commercial Challenge: Barnes & Noble Vs. Kohl’s
In the fourth episode of the RetailWire Christmas Commercial Challenge, we offer up new spots from Barnes & Noble and Kohl’s for you to critique. Which will do the best…
Is Haggling Retail’s New Sport?
While in a less confrontational manner than a Turkish bazaar, a deal-driven climate has apparently opened the way for haggling at retail. That’s the view of Mark Ellwood, author of…
All Aboard the Starbucks Express
Retailers have certainly become attracted to mass transit of late. The latest news on the retail/transit connection front is that Starbucks has opened a full-service coffee shop on board a…
Macy’s Proves Department Stores Are Relevant
L Brand’s CEO Les Wexner may think of department stores as being “irrelevant,” but Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s clearly didn’t get the memo on the heels of a third quarter where…
Family Dollar, Coke Engage Shoppers With ‘Shared Media’
Some CPG manufacturers and retailers are replacing traditional co-marketing methods with a new form of collaboration called “shared media,” jointly developing a strategic approach to communicating with shoppers along the…
Restaurants Look For Growth in Grocery Stores
Restaurants are invading the supermarket. Every day it seems as though a new restaurant product is either being placed on store shelves or announcing a deal that will lead to…
Don’t Call It ‘The Customer-Centric Supply Chain’
At the recent Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals’ annual conference, Tesla turned out to be most emblematic of the reason why we’re all going to hear about retail and…
Tesco to Ask Shoppers, ‘Paper or Digital?’
Tesco wants its shoppers to forgo paper, at least when it concerns receipts. According to a Daily Mirror report, the retailer is in talks with a vendor to roll out…
Kmart Offers New, Costly Path to Purchase
Like its sister company, Sears, Kmart has achieved a degree of success with its layaway plan by catering to consumers on the low-end of the economic ladder. Now, Kmart is…
Family-Owned Chain Wants to ‘Save Thanksgiving’
In an ad that appeared in the Sunday edition of The Star-Ledger, the largest daily newspaper in New Jersey, P.C. Richard & Son, a family owned and operated chain, issued…
No Rest For Amazon, USPS on Sunday
Consumers have always been able to shop Amazon.com 24/7 and now the e-tail giant, with a big assist from the U.S. Postal Service, is going to offer Sunday delivery to…
Target Develops Green Scorecard
Citing consumers demand for safer, sustainable products, Target is planning to create an environmental scoring system for the thousands of products it sells. How strong an influence do you think…
Who Owns the Customer Experience?
Whether it is a chief customer officer, chief omni-channel officer or another C-level executive, retailers are debating the advantages and disadvantages of assigning an owner of the customer experience. Who…
Should Book Dealers Take Amazon’s Kindle Deal?
Taking the old saying, “If you can’t beat them, join them,” to an extreme, Amazon is offering independent booksellers discounts and other incentives to sell Kindle devices and related e-books…
Older Americans Slowly Warming Up to Social Media
A new study of social media habits shows that Boomers and older generations are increasingly curious about online social networking yet also increasingly frustrated with websites. How would you rate…
Is Free Sampling a Digital Opportunity?
PINCHme and Sumpto are both digital platforms that deliver free samples, although one is looking for feedback and trial while the other is about influence. What do you think of…
The RetailWire Christmas Commercial Challenge: Kmart Vs. Walmart
Two commercials: Each created with the goal of drumming up consumer excitement and driving traffic and sales. The third episode of the RetailWire Christmas Commercial Challenge, we offer up new…
A&F Apologizes to Plus Size Consumers
Abercrombie & Fitch is changing course. They had refused to sell women’s jeans above size 10 in the past and took some public relation hits. But starting next spring, the…
Walmart.com Can’t Live With Glitchy Prices
Stuff happens. It’s a basic fact anyone involved with operating a website knows. Amazon.com knows it, eBay does, the U.S. government certainly does and so too does Walmart. Yesterday, an…
The Container Store Faces Challenge to Conscious Capitalism
“Some say that by being public, our culture will change for the worse. But this is not going to happen. Instead, we’ll continue to grow our yummy culture.” That’s what…
Blockbuster News! Video Stores Follow Dinosaurs
Blockbuster has announced it would close its remaining 300 stores by early January. The company also announced it would close its Blockbuster By Mail DVD service in mid-December. What is…
