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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Kroger Deep Sixes Salad Bars
Simply put, salad bars no longer make business sense for Kroger in many locations and the chain has moved many of them out of stores and replaced them with packaged…
Retail Customer Experience: The 10 Essential Strengths of Front-Line Retail Employees
Most customers assume that small, local stores generally have a bigger focus on customer-care excellence. However, this isn’t always the case. Which retailers, in your experience, do the best job…
College Tells Nike ‘Just Pay It’
On Friday, the University of Wisconsin canceled its licensing agreement with Nike Inc. over the non-payment of more than $2 million in severance due workers of two plants that closed…
BrainTrust Query: Should You Fire Your Customers?
In a recent post on The New York Times website, the owner of a company that provides corporate data backups wrote a post suggesting that her smaller clients might have…
Interview & Podcast: Diapers.com Finds ‘Better Way’ for Parents
Marc Lore and Vinit Bharara are not just the co-founders of Diapers.com, they’re dads. And, it’s from the personal experience of too many late night trips to the store to…
Battle of West Virginia vs. U.K. Being Weighed Across U.S.
Viewers not yet in agreement with chef Jamie Oliver’s efforts on ABC’s Food Revolution TV program may be interested to know about improvements to children’s behavior, academic achievements and school…
MasterCard to Launch Online Shopping Mall
MasterCard Worldwide is launching MasterCard Marketplace, an e-commerce site promising tailored discounts and special deals each day for MasterCard members, relying on technology that analyzes consumer behavior to display offers…
BrainTrust Query: The Disloyalty Card
A few months back, James Hoffmann reported that Gwilym Davies, the 2009 World Barista Champion, had implemented a rather unique idea for his cafe: the disloyalty card. What do…
Kroger Pulling Back on In-Store Clinics
The high hopes retailers had for in-store clinics may not yet quite be dashed, however, Kroger and its The Little Clinic business are following in the steps of others with…
A Long Strange Trip to Social Media
Unconventional in many ways over its 30-year span, the Grateful Dead are now frequently praised for their business smarts. Some claim their success was partly because they embraced social networking…
Reactions Mixed to Tiger Woods’ New Nike Ad
Tiger Woods chose the Masters Tournament to make his return to golf and Nike decided to use the event to create a new commercial that shows Mr. Woods staring into…
Should Ronald McDonald Retire?
A coalition of health professionals and parents last week called for the resignation of Ronald McDonald. They claim the 50-year old mascot encourages kids to eat unhealthy foods and contributes…
Interview & Podcast: Sharing Key to eSpare’s Growth
There’s hope for the mechanically challenged among us. ESpares, a website that sells spare parts for home and garden products to consumers around the globe, is showing us how to…
Retail:Next Studies: Investing in the Shopper Experience
Price, product selection and technology can only take you so far. Retailers need to deliver unique shopping experiences and customer service that meets shoppers’ expectations. Those are the key takeaways…
Nordstrom Takes DIY Approach to Credit Card Program
Many retailers have sold off their credit card portfolios to partner banks in recent years as a hedge against the downside of late payments and customer defaults. One of the…
Posen Popping Up in NYC for Target
Shoppers in Manhattan will get an early preview of the new Zac Posen for Target line at the chain’s newest pop-up store located on Eighth Ave. at 34th St. What…
FDBuyer: Fire the Nerds! Is there hope for those secondary brands after all?
No rocket science here — the recession has turned many branded manufacturers into cowards, afraid to innovate. More and more, from the shopper’s point of view, the only real differentiation…
Ace: The Helpful Small Job Place
Ace Hardware wants consumers to think of it as the convenient place to go for smaller jobs around the house and is launching a new ad campaign this week intended…
eBay Promotes One-Stop Fashion Shop
With the launch of eBay Fashion, the company is looking to build on past performance in apparel by offering an enhanced shopping destination that includes an online mall (Brooks Brothers,…
BrainTrust Query: He’s a Lifer
In a story of a recent management decision, a “lifer” is skipped over for a younger, though competent, employee. Complications ensue. What factors do you think need to be taken…
Old Favorites Take a New Twist
Campbell has decided to – cautiously – update some of the recipes on its cans in line with American’s more refined gourmet tastes while Hellmann’s has an entire website devoted…
