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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Walmart Takes Steps to Deal with Dollar Stores
A New York Post article reports that Walmart is asking suppliers to come to the retailer with their lowest “opening price points” to deal with competition from dollar stores. Are…
Retail TouchPoints: Starbucks, Disney and Guess Up The Ante With Mobile
Starbucks announced last week the launch of mobile payment in its 6,800 U.S. company-operated stores and more than 1,000 Starbucks located in Target locations. What do you think of Starbucks…
Financial Times: Amazon Ready to Deliver Groceries Nationwide
According to the Financial Times, Amazon is planning to expand the Tote service “company wide” from its Seattle home market. What is your reaction to Amazon expanding the Tote service…
New Board Directors Could Shake Up J.C. Penney
Back in October, we wrote, “William Ackman isn’t the type of investor to put a lot of money into a company and let management continue to do its thing.” True…
CPGmatters: Adding Virtual Connections Could Increase Sales at Shelf
According to a survey from Cisco, retailers must respond to technology-savvy consumers by combining web-like and in-store shopping experiences to create “mashops” in order to drive growth and build brand…
Harnessing Customer Power to Increase Retail Growth
One of Britain’s biggest DIY retailers has decided to tackle customer comments head-on. Ian Cheshire, chief executive of Kingfisher, B&Q’s parent, is recruiting a new “customer officer” according to the…
Store Expansion Back on the Agenda for 2011
Retailers appear to be back in expansion mode, according to the ninth annual Retail Horizons: Benchmarks for 2010 report from the NRF and KPMG LLP. How do you think retailers’…
BrainTrust Query: The Enduring Allure of the Secret Handshake
Facebook has become the ultimate online commune. In fact, the web in general has in many ways become the truest expression of the idea of equal access and egalitarianism –…
From Sci-Fi to Retail: Face-Scanning Technology
At the NRF convention, Kraft Foods Inc. and Intel Corp. unveiled a new kiosk that uses facial recognition to suggest food choices for shoppers. How receptive will consumers be to…
Walmart Pushing Food Industry in Healthy Direction
Walmart is looking to make America healthier while saving its citizens money in the process. Yesterday, the retailing giant announced it was putting its clout behind First Lady Michelle Obama’s…
2G Digital Coupons Get Personal
There are patterns in digital innovation. The first generation of digital recreates the original. The second generation creates something new. What do you expect from the next generation of digital…
Disputes Over Price (Guarantees)
According to an announcement in just-food.com, Wal-Mart’s UK subsidiary, Asda, “has extended its ‘price guarantee’ to refund the difference to consumers if it is not 10 percent cheaper than its…
LivingSocial’s Attention-Getting Amazon Offer
The daily deal sites LivingSocial and Groupon, one getting financial backing from Amazon.com and the other (presumably) setting itself up for a major initial public offering, went after consumers and…
Shopper Insights: Increasingly a ‘Joint Responsibility’
Retailers and manufacturers may not be getting ready to join hands in a circle and sing “Kumbaya,” but a RetailWire poll finds that both parties understand the need to work…
Shopping Impulses Hit ‘Before the Store’
The NPD Group’s Before the Store report found that 94 percent of U.S. households prepare a written shopping list prior to grocery shopping, and 72 percent never or only occasionally…
Celeb Ads the Worst. What About Tweets?
A new report finds that advertising featuring celebrities are rarely worth the paper the endorsement deals are signed on, while another draws attention to the practice of celebrities engaged in…
BrainTrust Query: Private Brand Evolution
Canadian retailer Loblaw’s arguably started the “prolifics” brand trend back in the ’90s when it first made its President’s Choice private label available to U.S. retailers. What’s the likelihood that…
Study: Men Go Grocery Shopping
Throw out the stereotypes. A new study from Yahoo shows that adult males in the U.S. between 18 and 64 are doing their part with a number of household chores…
PL Buyer: Publix’s Private Label Followers
Publix is changing the way people feel about private label goods. Floridians have even been spotted shopping at Walmart with their reusable Publix shopping bags. What do you think has…
The Gap Goes After Lululemon
Attempting to tap into the gusher Lululemon has found, Athleta, the women’s activewear brand owned by The Gap, last week opened its first flagship store in San Francisco. How successful…
Target Puts Card Receivables Up for Sale
Target’s announcement last week that it had reached a deal to move into Canada was far from all the big news coming out of Minneapolis. The company has decided to…
