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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Speed Sells
There’s no doubt that behind the wheel of a car, speed kills. When it comes to driving business at retail, however, speed sells. That is especially true during the holiday…
Customers Reload and Starbucks Takes Off
The Starbucks card isn’t your typical loyalty card. For one thing, the people who use it appear to be genuinely loyal customers of the coffee chain as evidenced by the…
Extreme Home Makeover: The Christmas Edition
You already see them popping up – those inflatable Santas and Snowmen. Today, we live in a nation that’s out of control when it comes to decorating for the holidays…
Mobile Marketing Goes Mainstream
Mobile marketing is now being given its own budget line at consumer brand companies such as Procter & Gamble and Microsoft, pushing so-called “third-screen media” into the marketing mainstream. …
Behind Wal-Mart’s Disappointing Numbers
In recent days, a number of retailers, Wal-Mart being the most notable, have gone public with disappointing financial results while offering an unhealthy dose of pessimism for the near future…
Can’t Help Falling in Love with Elvis Coffee
It’s been awhile since the last sighting of the King but now the Ugly Mug Coffee Company, based down the road from Graceland in Memphis, Tenn., has come out with…
When Charity Becomes Fashionable
It’s a common occurrence. Having a well-known celebrity publicly engaged in a cause can bring badly needed dollars to address the issues a particular charity was created for. …
Dollar General News: Store Closings and New Prez/COO
The retailer with the most stores in the U.S. has decided it could use a few less. Dollar General announced yesterday it was closing 400 underperforming locations, stepping up…
Online Sales + Tax
It’s a question that’s been debated almost from the very first sale of a product online: Should merchants be required to collect sales tax for the states where the product…
Zune Swoons While iPod Rocks
Microsoft’s answer to Apple Computer’s iPod appears to be no answer at all, according to an IDG News Service report. The Zune, as the Microsoft player is named, has received…
Save Mart Buys Albertsons Stores
Save Mart Supermarkets will be much bigger, about twice its current size, with the acquisition of 132 Albertsons stores in northern California and northern Nevada. Many of the stores…
CEO Resigns: What’s next for BJ’s?
BJ’s Wholesale Club has been the subject of takeover rumors for some time now and the speculation surrounding the company has only increased with last week’s sudden resignation of Mike…
Tesco Brings Suppliers Along for U.S. Adventure
Tesco is looking to eliminate any surprises, at least the unpleasant kind, when it opens its first stores in the U.S. next year. That’s why the British retailing giant is…
People Talk
Keller Fay knows that people like to talk and the word-of-mouth research firm is in the process of trying to find out about what. Since April, Keller Fay has interviewed…
Credit Cards Accused of Holding Back Online Sales
Listen to Gary Marino and he’ll tell you not to be too impressed by the 25 percent growth in annual online sales. “That’s not good enough,” he told Forbes. “E-commerce…
BrainTrust Query: Black Friday…store traffic, but at what cost?
Although a retail consultant, Don Delzell held himself above the fray and never actually participated in the Black Friday phenomenon. This year, lured by outrageous discounts on large screen plasma…
Guess Who’s Driving the Hybrid?
You know what they say about making assumptions. It’s a practice that rarely turns out well for anyone. A recent study by the automotive web site Autobytel clearly demonstrates the…
Grocers Inch Closer to Wal-Mart
HSBC analyst Mark Husson said in a note to clients that supermarket chains such as Kroger, Safeway, Supervalu and Delhaize America have weathered the worst Wal-Mart dished out and are…
Vitamin/Nutritional Supplement Market Entering a Battle of Strength
After a couple of unhealthy years, sales of vitamins and nutritional supplements are looking rosy again. Supermarkets lead in the category with a 33 percent share, followed by mass at…
PL Buyer Cover Story: Organic Outreach
Having already established roots in the natural and organic market, Wild Oats Markets is broadening its store brand reach. The chain is pushing its private label in its own stores…
CSD: A Culture of Caring
Ask any retailer in the industry what sets them apart – what’s their most valuable asset – and almost everyone will say “our people.” But for Valero Energy Corp., it’s…
