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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Kmart Caters to Disabled
A Kmart located in Southwest Florida in Lee County opened early for business yesterday for a select group of customers who find it especially difficult to shop during the holiday…
Pure-Plays Are Profitable
A Wall Street Journal piece says something unusual has happened on the heels of the dot-com bust. A number of pure-play specialty retailers are not only making money, they are…
Levi’s Straussing Out
Levi Strauss used to be the name brand jean everybody was wearing. That time seems far off as the company continues to struggle in its efforts to reclaim the brand…
The Retail Middle Shrinks
Based on the latest reports, retailers at the luxury end of the spectrum (Saks, Nordstrom) and discounters (Wal-Mart, Target) turned in strong year-over-year sales numbers while those looking to fill…
Wal-Mart Wants Meat in 48-Hours
Wal-Mart wants to cut the time it takes for it to get case-ready meat after placing an order from 96 to 48-hours, reports Reuters. Would achieving a 48-hour turnaround give…
Bar Code Scammers Arrested
Federal authorities arrested three people in the Atlanta area yesterday who allegedly used a bar code scam to steal $150,000 and perhaps more from Home Depot and Lowe’s. The three…
ABC News Places Blame For Obesity Epidemic
Grocery manufacturers, retailers and others involved in the food industry — get ready to deal with the brouhaha that comes out of next Monday’s ABC News broadcast: “Peter Jennings Reporting…
SoCal Lockout/Strike: Day 53
Reports we’re getting from Southern California offer a mixed story on the impact the Teamsters’ walkout is having on product stock levels at the 800 plus stores owned by Albertsons,…
Survey: 88% Want Mandatory GMO Labeling
A study released by the Consumers’ Association of Canada yesterday says 88 percent of Canadian consumers believe there should be mandatory labeling of genetically modified organisms (GMO) in all food…
Japanese Two-Dollar Store Format Debuts
The Vancouver Sun reports Daiso-Sangyo Co. of Japan is opening its first store in North America next week at the Aberdeen Centre mall. What are your thoughts about Daiso-Sangyo expanding…
The Army To March On Its RFID in 2005
Suppliers to the U.S. Department of Defense are expected to have radio frequency identification (RFID) tags on their product shipments ready for tracking by January 2005, said a DOD official…
The Kids Are Alright
A New York Times article says kids today are more interested in the latest gadget and less in fashion. As proof are numbers from NPD, which show clothing purchases made…
Chains Make List of Stocks to Avoid
According to a column by Michael Brush on MSN’s Money Central site, Albertsons, Kroger and Safeway are three stocks investors want to avoid buying in 2004. What do you see…
A Blockbuster Deal in Offing
Viacom is looking to sell its 82 percent stake in Blockbuster video to focus on its core media business, and that’s just fine with Blockbuster’s chief executive, reports USA Today…
W-M Says No To Signing on the Dotted Line
A report in the Wall Street Journal says Wal-Mart will announce today that it will stop accepting MasterCard debit cards when consumers sign for the transaction rather than using a…
The Future’s So Bright, Grocer Has to Wear Shades
The biggest challenge, says Gene Fulton, president and owner of the nine-store Jensen’s Finest Foods business, is not dealing with Wal-Mart or some other competitor. “The biggest challenge,” he says,…
Safeway CFO Resigns
The chief financial officer (CFO) of the Safeway US grocery chain has resigned making his the second high-level executive departure from the company in the past year, reports the Associated…
Drugstore Focuses on Driving Repeat Purchases
Drugstore.com’s philosophy is that doing business over the Internet “is about privacy and personalization” and the company’s chief executive says it “works hard at exploiting those two attributes.” What are…
Cards Become Gift of Choice for Many
Tracy Mullin, president of the National Retail Federation (NRF) says, “They’re no longer considered the ‘lazy man’s gift’– people love to get them.” To what do you attribute the growing…
Shoppers Shop, Retailers Happy
Shoppers showed up early in search of bargains and spent freely to get the 2003 winter holiday shopping season off to a solid start this past weekend, according to retailer…
Juan Valdez Looks for Starbucks Fight
The Colombian Coffee Federation has decided it can not wait on others to sell its coffee so it’s going to do it on its own. The federation, representing 560,000 coffee…
