RECENT discussions
Discussions
Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Sports Authority Looks to Gain Flexibility
The CEO of the Sports Authority retail chain believes the company will do better as a private company than it has done as a publicly traded organization. “As a…
OfficeMax Plans Turnaround
In yet another turnaround plan announced by a retailer, OfficeMax has put forth a three-point plan the company says will make it more competitive and profitable in the future. Sam…
Get Ready for the Culture Clash – Part 1
In recognizing the changing profile of customers across the country, companies are increasingly seeking to create multicultural workforces. Yet, as many take on the exciting challenge of working with people…
Beer and Roses
A new Beer Institute promotional program supported by major brewers plans to put beer in a whole new light for consumers. According to a CNNMoney.com report, the “Here’s To Beer”…
Loyalty Through Content
New York research firm eMarketer expects packaged-goods firms to spend $470 million online in 2006. This would be a 17 percent increase from 2005 and a 42 percent increase over…
Done Deal: Albertsons Sold
The second go-round proved a charm as Supervalu, CVS and an investment group led by Cerberus Capital Management, that includes Kimco Realty, Schottenstein Stores Corp., Lubert-Adler Partners and Klaff Realty,…
Circuit City Charges Forward
In case you hadn’t noticed, Circuit City is on something of a tear. The consumer electronics chain has put together a plan that promotes better store level execution and customer…
Wild Oats and Whole Foods to Become Neighbors
Whole Foods will soon have a store operating in Portland, Maine that is right next to a Wild Oats location. The country’s leading natural foods chain has agreed to buy…
Home Depot 2010
Home Depot is looking to slow things down a little. The “things” being the rate at which the company opens new stores. Since Bob Nardelli took over the reigns…
Retail: Talent Wanted
Roger Farah, president and chief operating officer of Polo Ralph Lauren Corp., told an audience at the National Retail Federation conference in New York this week that the biggest challenge…
Why Did the Consumer Cross the Road to McD’s?
McDonald’s customers do not live by burgers and fries alone. That was the central theme of a speech given by Ralph Alvarez, president of McDonald’s North America, at the annual…
NRF Study: Growth is Key Issue for Retailers in 2006
Last year, it was supply chain efficiency; this year, it’s growing the top line. According to a survey by the National Retail Federation (NRF) Foundation and BearingPoint released earlier this…
The Invisible Innovations
Many of the innovations at this year’s NRF are difficult to understand. These “invisible” innovations include applications ranging from forecasting for merchandise planning and workforce management to security applications for…
Loyalty Through Leadership
Writing on the Fast Company blog, Chuck Salter relates an airline situation with a twist. Instead of swearing off an airline due to his experiencing several mechanical delays, information and…
Home Depot Rides the Gray Wave
Acknowledging the National Retail Federation’s 2006 outlook calling for a cooling off in the housing boom to 4.7 percent growth from last year’s 6.1 percent, Home Depot CEO Robert Nardelli…
Penney Emphasizes Private Labels
J.C.Penney is looking to new private label brands in the apparel and furniture categories to help it connect with its core middle-class consumer base. The two newest labels the…
The Challenge of Top Down Merchandise Planning
One of the features of this year’s National Retail Federation (NRF) convention are “working lunches” where groups of retailers sit at various tables dedicated to different subjects that are of…
Retail Supply Chain Deemed Fully Optimized
You heard it here first. Judging by the emphasis of the technology exhibits, there is no more optimization to be achieved from the retail supply chain. The focus seems to…
ARTS Streamlines Proposal Process
The Association for Retail Technology Standards (ARTS) is the National Retail Federation’s Technology Standards group. Probably one of the most underutilized tools retailers have for making an information technology investment…
Customer Service: The Human Touch
Consumers today are all too familiar with the seemingly endless gauntlet of phone prompts one must go through to get an actual customer service representative on the line. Many, if…
Albertsons ‘For Sale’ Again
A report last week in the New York Post said that major shareholder anger over Albertsons’ decision to pass on a $15.7 billion bid for the company has it once…
