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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Grueling Job Interviews: Required or Excessive?
Companies are increasingly instituting extensive interview processes to wring through personality quirks and ensure commitment before making initial hires. What are some best practices for interviewing job applicants? What unorthodox…
Walmart.com Looking for a ‘Great Christmas’
Raul Vazquez, CEO of Walmart.com, is looking for big things from the website this holiday season, specifically for Walmart.com’s sales to jump between 40 and 60 percent this year. What…
Europeans and Americans Seek Safety Standard for Toys
It can be pretty dangerous being a kid these days. In recent months, one product after another has been recalled due to some safety hazard and the resulting havoc played…
‘Tis the Season to Cheat Retailers
According to the National Retail Federation’s (NRF) second annual Return Fraud Survey, stores can expect to get lots of returns following the Christmas holiday and many of those will be…
Costco Offers Cash to Recycle Electronics
Costco has created a recycling program that pays members for trading-in computers and other electronics. The company’s website has an interface that allows consumers to enter information about the product…
It’s Not the Same Old Song at Retail Anymore
According to a Bloomberg report, the Eagles’ Long Road Out of Eden CD sold more units than any other new album in the U.S. Because the CD was being sold…
CPGmatters: Crayola Connects with Consumers Using New Assortments, Merchandising
Crayola is transforming the Children’s Art Supplies (CAS) category by leveraging shopper insights to improve assortments and retail execution. The result is a stronger connection with consumers and increased brand…
The Problem with ASNs
According to a recent survey of retailers, 89 percent required the use of ASNs (advance shipping notices) by their suppliers, but found accuracy and efficiency to be lacking. As a…
WinCo Succeeds By Knowing and Serving Its Customers
Bill Long, the chairman and former CEO of WinCo Foods, knows there are certain groups of customers that his company doesn’t do very well with. The employee-owned company, headquartered in…
BrainTrust Query: Is Open Source Worth It?
BrainTrust panelist Bill Bittner has been working on an Open Source based software project. It’s caused him to think through the whole process that brings a company to decide on…
Tesco’s Fresh & Easy Opens for Business
Tesco has certainly created high expectations for its U.S. debut. With pronouncements such as offering “Whole Foods quality at Wal-Mart prices,” Tesco has led some to talk in terms of…
The Hunger Problem Problem
Nearly two-thirds (64 percent) of Americans believe the U.S. hunger problem has worsened in the last year, in part due to rising food and fuel prices, according to a survey…
StorefrontBacktalk: E-Commerce Sites Aren’t Too Social
The influence of social networking sites on e-commerce has been overblown and such sites have very little influence on purchases, according to a report from Jupiter Research. How much influence…
Report: Safeway Looking to Sell, Roundy’s Looking to Buy
A report by the Financial Times said that, having failed to sell its Roundy’s business, the private equity firm of Willis Stein is now looking to grow through an acquisition…
Is At-Retail Marketing at Risk?
As suppliers turn more of their attention to at-retail marketing, they are colliding with merchants’ policies of operating an increasingly clutter-free shopping environment. The collision is putting some important issues…
Retailers Try to Figure Out What Older Women Want
What does a woman want? More specifically, what do women 35 and older want? Consumers in this demographic want to feel as though they are getting special attention, but they…
The Genetically Modified Foods Issue Reaches the Campaign Trail
A consumer advocacy group is pushing presidential candidates to support making labeling of genetically modified foods the law – with some success. Democrats Hillary Clinton and John Edwards have agreed…
Toys and Babies ‘R’ Us
Over the past year, Toys ‘R’ Us has experimented with a store that combines its successful Babies ‘R’ Us formula with elements of its struggling toy store business under a…
Burt’s Bees Faces Future as Clorox Brand
Burt’s Bees CEO John Replogle believes the company’s sale to Clorox makes a lot of sense. While Burt’s Bees will become part of a CPG powerhouse’s brand portfolio once the…
Added Extras May Not Add Up
Most food manufacturers and retailers know they must choose their words carefully when making health claims. But there has as yet been little or no explicit link between saying that…
Packing Pink
Gander Mountain, the outdoor lifestyle retailer, is looking to encourage women to take up firearms with a new line of pink pistols and rifles. The company said it made the…
