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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Publix Pix C-Store Concept For Growth
Publix maintains it is still in testing mode with its Pix convenience/gas store concept even after recently opening its thirteenth store. Do you see convenience stores as a bigger growth…
Zara to Go Online
Zara is known as a leader among the fast fashion retail set but it has been downright slow when it comes to developing a selling presence online. What specific challenges…
BrainTrust Query: Is the Coupon Answer zavers.com?
Everyone but the consumer hates coupons. Actually, consumers aren’t all that happy either. Now relative newcomer Zave Networks is offering a way to process POS discounts that should make everyone…
Blockbuster Shifting Resources from Stores to Kiosks
This week, Blockbuster announced that it plans to close as many as 960 stores by the end of next year while continuing to push ahead with placement of its Blockbuster…
Luxury Designers Go to Extremes in Today’s Fashion Biz
Norma Kamali designs a $500 jumper for upscale department stores and specialty shops. She also has her name on a tank top selling for $10 at Wal-Mart. This approach, according…
JTPP: Changing the Game in Trade Promotions Planning and Analysis
Most industry observers would agree that if the practice of trade promotion today isn’t “broken” it is at least seriously flawed. Far too much time is spent negotiating deals; far…
Asda Introduces Indian Fashion Line
Wal-Mart’s Asda division in the U.K., identifing a demand for affordable Indian fashions, has announced it is rolling out a line under its George label in 21 stores. Interestingly, Asda…
Kraft Foods to Slash Supplier Base
In a move expected to drive more than $300 million in annual savings, Kraft Foods is cutting the number of suppliers it uses by more than half. The food giant…
Martha to Try On Home Depot Orange
Although unlikely anyone will see Martha Stewart donning a Home Depot orange apron, consumers will find plenty of Martha Stewart Living merchandise in the chain’s stores now that the two…
Credit Cards Not in Aldi’s Future
As an article on the Digital Transactions website points out, Aldi doesn’t do credit cards. Sure, the company is running a test in 49 stores in Oklahoma, but that has…
Armed Robbery! It’s OK…Just Training
Armed robberies have become a common and disturbing fact of life for many working behind pharmacy counters; it makes sense companies would take steps to prepare workers for the possibility…
Retail Customer Experience: Making the case for custom point-of-purchase content
In a consumer’s home, the advertiser competes with everything; there is nothing endemic about a TV program, a magazine, or the Internet. But retail is different – very different. At…
The Incredible, Growing Sales Receipt
Register receipts across stores now can typically measure over two- to three-feet long as retailers add coupons, return policies, loyalty points, advertising, etc. Do you find the lengthier trend in…
BrainTrust Query: 45 Percent of Employees Don’t Contribute to the Bottom Line
The Associated Press reported that according to a phone survey of “1,000 randomly selected U.S. small businesses, 41 percent said workers are paid for attendance rather than performance.” Is the…
Fashion’s Night Out Creates a Hubbub
Fashion’s Night Out proved that one way to get shoppers back into stores is to throw a party, with coordinated events in stores across major cities. What did you think…
Rhyme and Rhythm to Inspire Food Shoppers
Morrisons, one of the U.K.’s so-called Big Four supermarket chains, has embarked on a novel way of encouraging customers to cook. Dubbed “Food Laureate,” the scheme combines specially written poems…
Price Comparison Function Offers Competitive Advantage
It works for insurance companies and perhaps it will also work for e-tailers – a comparison shopping function that allows consumers to see how the site they are shopping on…
Study Sees Upside of Store-Within-The-Store Concepts
A study from two marketing professors explores whether stores should just be leasing retail space to manufacturers. The stores-within-a-store model is used across the board in China and other Asian…
Organic Grocers Make Moves in Whole Foods’ Backyard
Austin, Texas is the home of Whole Foods. Maybe that’s what has driven organic and conventional food competitors from other places to set up stores in and around the Lone…
In Search of Online Grocery Profits
Companies have been looking to strike gold with online grocery services for years. The list of those that have tried and failed is significantly longer than those that have succeeded…
RSR Research: Is There Significant New Demand for Retail BI?
Even as retailers’ access to information has grown, the ability to turn that information into actionable tasks has languished. RSR believes that actionable information derived from real-time business intelligence (BI)…
