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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Nike’s Knight Passes Swoosh to New Leader
As a former track star at the University of Oregon and co-founder of Nike, Phil Knight knows something about competition and relay races. Mr. Knight’s career has been dedicated to…
Wal-Mart Knucklehead Facing Jail
As those who saw the recent CNBC documentary know, the company’s chief executive, Lee Scott, calls associates who stray from the retailer’s rules of conduct: knuckleheads. Mr. Scott doesn’t…
Scare is Real, Mad Cow or Not
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investigating a possible case of an animal infected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy, AKA BSE or mad cow’s disease. Is the American food supply…
GOP Doesn’t See Anything Cool in Labeling Law
The Republicans, with the elections giving them greater control of the House and Senate, aren’t waiting for the next session of Congress to begin pushing their agenda for change. A…
Only Edward Lampert Knows
Now that the deal many have been waiting for since Edward Lampert took control of Kmart has actually happened, the big question on the minds of most retail industry insiders…
IT Simplicity: A ‘Move in the Opposite Direction’
In a recent survey, Economist Magazine portrayed the “Next Big Wave” of technology, not as RFID or some other radically new hardware capability, but rather the simplification of how we…
Starbucks Fills Up Recycled Paper Cups
Starbucks plans to use coffee cups with 10 percent recycled material in a step the company hopes will win it points with its environmentally concerned customers. Is Starbucks commitment to…
Jewel Keeps it Kosher
When the Jewel-Osco store in the Chicago suburb of Evanston decided to install an all kosher food section, they made sure they did it right. Despite Jewel’s best efforts, the…
No Big Surprise: Kmart and Sears to Merge
It’s not as though the announced merger agreement between Kmart Holding Corporation (Edward Lampert) and Sears, Roebuck and Co. (Edward Lampert) is going to come as any great shock to…
Sears Multicultural Makeover Ready for Holidays
The first 97 units in Sears’ test of its multicultural store layout targeting specific ethnic groups (African-American, Hispanic and Asian) will be ready for the holiday shopping season, reports USA…
RFID: The 70 Percent Solution
The recent move by the Food and Drug Administration and pharmacy manufacturers to reduce counterfeiting and tampering with prescription medicines using radio frequency identification (RFID) should only be viewed as…
Junk Food Commercials Banned
A new law in the United Kingdom has placed a ban on commercials promoting junk foods until after nine o’clock at night, reports The Press Association. The British Health Secretary,…
Toys R Us Following Good Book’s Advice
The Christmas season is supposed to be about giving and doing unto others as you would have then done unto you. Well, it appears as though Toys R Us is…
Wanted: Overqualified Workers
While many retailers are hiring so-called unskilled labor to fill job openings, Books-A-Million attracts and hires workers with degrees and business experience often held by executives at other concerns. Is…
Dollars Shift to Loyalty
Writing for Incentives magazine, Leo Jakobson states that TiVo is accelerating the shift of marketing dollars away from traditional mass-market advertising and toward more targeted methods of reaching potential buyers,…
McD’s CEO’s Health Raises Succession Questions
McDonald’s chief executive Charlie Bell’s continuing battle with colon cancer has raised questions about the company’s plans should he not be able to continue in the job. A report in…
A Blockbuster of a Deal or a Last Gasp?
Blockbuster has proposed a $1 billion takeover bid for rival Hollywood Video that the company sees as a means to gain a competitive advantage in the home entertainment market but…
More Contactless Payment Solutions On the Near Horizon
Until you are forced to watch it, you would never believe the contortions people go through to pay for a simple order with cash. Paying with a wave of a…
Santa Caught in L.A. Traffic Jam
Retailers and manufacturers are trying to find a way around what could turn out to be this Christmas season’s nightmare — products stuck in containers and sitting on ships at…
Toy Manufacturers Choose Sides
Toy manufacturers are rallying to Toys ‘R’ Us’ side this holiday season with exclusive deals and advertising support because, as one anonymous company executive told The Wall Street Journal, “Toys…
Does Your Retail Brand Habla Español?
At a time when there are close to 40 million Hispanics in the U.S., most of whom are most comfortable speaking and being spoken to in Spanish, some retailers are…
