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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Americans Eating Healthier and Exercising, Yeah Right
Dr. David Schutt of Thomson Medstat, the Michigan-based health-care research firm that conducted a phone survey of 11,000 people regarding their eating and exercise habits, told The Associated Press, “There…
Sandbox Coaching for the Executive Suite
We talk a lot in this space about running retail and CPG businesses. Much of the advice centers on paying proper attention to customers. Good utilization of technology can help…
Stores Give Customers More for Their Dollars
Dollar stores are looking to attract consumers who may not have previously considered shopping in one of their stores. Chains and independents are spending money on remodels and training employees…
Techno Couture
The worlds of fashion and technology are beginning to synch up, albeit it at a snail mail pace. Recently, for example, Apple Computer and Nike came together to combine the…
BrainTrust Query: Does the surge in shopper media mean a sea change for brands?
Digital and networked media are popping up in all sorts of retail environments – from the flat video panels – to the gas pump islands at convenience stores – to…
A New Start for Lord & Taylor
Lord & Taylor won’t have Federated Department Stores around to ignore it anymore. The upscale department store chain is now the property of NRDC Equity Partners and National Realty &…
Walgreens and CVS take on Insurance Companies
Walgreens and CVS have stopped accepting prescriptions covered by some insurance companies over the amount the insurers are willing to pay for medicines. Consumers, of course, are caught in…
BrainTrust Query: Are publicly held supermarket chains headed for extinction?
When we think of which supermarket chains are best, they are either privately held or employee owned companies. When we think of chains that have struggled over the years, they…
P&G Tries Retail with Olay Store
Procter & Gamble wants a first-hand look at what and why women buy and that’s why the manufacturer is opening a 130-square-foot Olay Store in a Cincinnati-area mall. …
New Law is Big Box Pain for 18 Retailers
Wal-Mart is not the only retailer that will be affected when Chicago’s new “big box” ordinance goes into effect next July. Just ask Home Depot, Lowe’s, Nordstrom, Federated Department Stores,…
BrainTrust Query: Are retail walk-in clinics a cultural challenge or opportunity?
A recent WSJ article entitled, The Informed Patient: The New Force In Walk-In Clinics talks about the growing presence of these quick-treatment facilities in supermarket and drug retailers across the…
Meijer Rolls Back, Err, Drops Prices
Memo to Wal-Mart. Roll this back. Meijer’s “Price Drop” has arrived. The Grand Rapids, Michigan-based supercenter operator announced it was lowering prices and, beginning this Sunday, the company’s 175 stores…
Big Media Finds Its Way Into Teens’ Online Life
Last week, we discussed Wal-Mart’s effort to create a proprietary social networking site to market its teen apparel offerings. Many expressed their belief that, as teens spend more of their…
Clicking and Cooking at FreshDirect
FreshDirect will tell you that clicking and cooking go perfectly together. The New York-based online grocery and delivery service earlier this week announced the launch of its One-Click Recipes program,…
Food Lion Adapts
Food Lion knows that one size doesn’t fit all and the chain is remodeling stores in Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia to better reflect the customers each unit is looking…
Women Moving Slowly Up Corporate Ladder
Women may have come a long way but they still have quite a ways to go when it comes to moving up the corporate ladder in Fortune 500 companies. According…
BrainTrust Query: Contextually Relevant Promotions…Do They Produce?
This week, Burger King announced a very creative online promotion with Maxim magazine. Together, they created a microsite featuring video footage of three “hometown hottie” models that guys choose as…
Shoppers Checking Out on Impulse Items
Self-checkout systems have a number of benefits. A new study from IHL Consulting Group, however, suggests there may be at least one drawback to operating self-checkouts. It appears as though…
Safe Often Leads to Sorry on Hiring Front
It’s been said, “It’s better to be safe than sorry.” But for many companies hiring new employees, safe often leads to sorry consequences, say experts. The difference between excellence and…
BrainTrust Query: Has the risk been taken out of corporate buyouts?
Tuesday’s front-page article in The Wall Street Journal described how the new corporate buyouts funded by hedge funds and investment bankers no longer involve much risk for the investor. The…
Attack of the Brawny Burger
Find any synonym for humongous and you’ll know where the fast food industry is going with its burger offerings. According to a podcast report from Advertising Age, the so-called brawny…
