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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Restaurant Business is On Fire
Government numbers show that Americans are going out to restaurants in growing numbers. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Americans spent $33.7 billion in restaurants last month, eight percent more…
Great Customer Service: The Art of Saying No
It’s a unique approach to selling more goods at retail — tell the customer not to buy something. A sales associate’s suggestion that an out-of-towner hold off on purchasing gear…
RadioShack’s New Look and RFID Insights
RadioShack Corp. is going for a whole new look and insights into how to operate all its stores with its StoreOne flagship concept. An interesting feature of the flagship is…
TJX Combines Stores
The TJX Cos., operators or the T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods retail chains, thinks that two brands together might be better than one. The company has just opened the second…
Goliath Says Uncle Before David Throws Stone
The largest retailer in the world hasn’t gotten to that lofty position by surrendering every time competition got stiff or some group objected to how it went about its business…
New Strategy and Officer to Go With It at H-E-B
H.E. Butt Grocery Co. is celebrating its first 100 years in business and making plans to be sure the company will be around for another hundred. The San Antonio, Tex.-based…
What’s Up With Wal-Mart?
Considering Wal-Mart is the world’s largest retailer, the present reality is that the company is finding what others discovered before it: Getting to the top is easier than staying there…
Target Aims for 600 More Stores
Target is on roll. The retailer has an ambitious plan in place that will see it add 600 new stores over the next five years. Beyond that period, Target believes…
Mini Movies-to-Go
Universal Studios is joining Sony, Disney and Twentieth Century Fox in announcing it will release movies designed to play on Sony’s PlayStation Portable (PSP) gaming device. What does the increasing…
Penney Lays Claim to the Middle of the Road
While current retailing wisdom suggests that the only thing found in the middle of the road are painted lines and road kill, J.C. Penney seems to have found a place…
Safeway Looks to Less Contentious Future
Safeway’s management heads into the company’s May 25 annual shareholders’ meeting with a greater sense of calm, if not downright optimism, than it has had in recent years. “We have…
Deal Promises to Put Trading Partners in Sync with Each Other
Last week’s announcement that UCCnet and Transora have agreed to form a single organization promises to help retailers and their trading partners achieve the benefits of data synchronization. What does…
The Little Things Matter Most in Retail
In a Boston Globe report, Mr. Sargent explains how the office supplies retailer has focused on the little things to make the business run more efficiently, improve workplace conditions for…
Consumers Getting Crankier
Attention retailers and other businesses selling to consumers: Your customers are not happy. The latest results from the University of Michigan’s American Customer Satisfaction Index show a continuing decline in…
Americans Give Lip Service to Eating Better
What Americans say about how they would like to eat and what actually passes their lips on its way to their stomachs are two entirely different things, especially when eating…
Be Careful What You Google For
Google and the other search engines get fees from advertisers for featuring their sites on result screens and by placing ads on sites that seem relevant to their products. But…
Marquette Suffers a Loyalty Turnover
The loyalty of alumni enjoyed by a university is the envy of anyone who operates a loyalty program. Marquette University in Milwaukee recently shook the foundation of that loyalty and…
Seniors Getting Younger All The Time
The nation is getting older but the definition of senior citizen keeps getting younger. Although many Americans are now choosing to work past the “retirement age” of 65, consumers can…
Spartan Shareholder Wants to Sell
Spartan Stores brought Craig Sturken in to run the grocery wholesaler/retailer in 2003 to get its struggling business turned around. By most accounts, Mr. Sturken and his team at Spartan…
Publix Goes Au Naturale
Publix Supermarkets announced it plans to open two new natural food stores under the company’s GreenWise banner in 2006. The prevailing view is Publix is making this move to counter…
Is New Food Pyramid in Jeopardy?
According to a survey conducted by the California Olive Industry, the average consumer not working in the food industry is aware of the USDA’s new food pyramid, but knows little…
