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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Checkout Time Limit Around Four Minutes
A survey from M/A/R/C Research found that four out of five shoppers are satisfied with wait times–of about four minutes or less–at stores in most cases. But it also found…
GHQ: Order in the backroom
The focus in the backroom is to do more with less, and retailers are looking to logical layouts and space-saving strategies and equipment to help accomplish that goal. What…
Steve & Barry’s Sweet Lease Deals Expire
The most popular retailers commonly get the most advantageous lease terms from real estate landlords. But one fast-expanding retailer, Steve & Barry’s, is teetering on the edge of bankruptcy after…
BrainTrust Query: What is Amazon.com?
A couple weeks ago, RetailWire ran a question regarding Amazon’s spread into the office supplies segment. Bill Bittner did a little reading in the “investors section” of Amazon’s website and…
Starbucks Takes Step Back to Move Forward
Starbucks had previously announced it would slow the pace of new store openings in the U.S. and now the coffee giant has announced plans to shutter 600 underperforming stores this…
Cities Rebound as Suburban Living Costs Soar
Most people who live in American suburbs are not seriously thinking of moving to the nearest city, but as articles in Atlantic Monthly, The New York Times and Newsweek point…
Millennial Moms Arrive
So long soccer mom! She’s being replaced by the 20-to-30 year-old Gen Y generation female just starting to have babies. Long described in numerous and often contradictory ways, her traits…
P&G Vet Takes Over as Safeway’s CMO
Safeway announced yesterday that it has hired Diane Dietz, a former executive with Procter & Gamble who has been credited with having reinvigorated the Crest brand, as the supermarket chain’s…
Weight Loss Companies’ Shrinking Customer Base
Consumers who need to shed some pounds are more likely to cut out weight loss programs such as Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, etc. during tough economic periods. How do weight…
Violence at Retail
According to Dr. Larry Barton, a crisis management and workplace violence expert, there were 1.8 million workplace assaults in this country in 2007. Bullying was reported by 67 percent of…
Shoppers Turn to Dollar Stores to Save Big Bucks
It’s been seen before. When the economy gets a bit shaky, more consumers turn to dollar stores in search of bargains. According to Nielsen, there are plenty of consumers making…
FCC Seeks More Disclosure Around Product Placement Ads
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) last week voted unanimously to consider stricter rules for letting viewers know when advertisers have paid for products to appear within television programming. Do you…
Wal-Mart’s Logo Change (…er, we mean Walmart)
Walmart has confirmed earlier reports, starting with one in The Wall Street Journal, that it is rolling out a new logo to update its image. Gone will be the use…
PLBuyer: Pizza Products – Rollin’ in the Dough
According to Information Resources Inc. (IRI), frozen and refrigerated pizza crust/dough and pizza sauce saw a 22.1 percent rise in dollar sales through the 52-weeks ending Feb. 24. Growth in…
Ralphs Lowers Prices
Ralphs Grocery Co. has lowered prices on thousands of staples in what it said was a response to rising food and gasoline prices facing its Southern California consumers. But it’s…
Bridal Shops Trying On Charges
Women do undeniably love to try on dresses but stores also, undeniably, have a right not to have their time wasted or their clothes tried on an infinite number of…
Rite Aid Looks for Strong Second Half
Mary Sammons, chairman, president and CEO of Rite Aid, is not about to let a 20 cents per share loss in the first quarter get her down. The year is…
P&G CEO Advises Candidates to Stay Positive
Procter & Gamble’s chairman and chief executive A.G. Lafley wants the future President of the United States, whomever that may turn out to be, to remember that there is a…
Retail Crime Fighters
How worried are retailers about crime? Retail shrinkage accounted for $34 billion in 2007, according to the preliminary results of the National Retail Security Survey presented at the recent NRF…
Speculators Blamed for High Gas Prices
Michael Masters, portfolio manager of the Masters Capital Management hedge fund, thinks Americans are getting hosed at the gas pump. According to Mr. Masters and others, the price for a…
Hygiene Ratings Suggested For U.K. Supermarkets
Tesco, Sainsbury and Asda have all protested the ways and means that might be used to measure their food hygiene standards under a current proposal from the Britain’s Food Standards…
