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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Retailers Go Up Front with Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi technology is being used for more than just warehouse and backroom tracking inventory by a growing number of retailers and other companies who have discovered these systems can substantially…
Nothing’s Made in America
An Industry Week article asks if the ‘Made in America’ label still matters to consumers. The piece points out that even Wal-Mart, the poster company of American retailing, has…
Zero Calorie Slurpee Debuts
7-Eleven has announced it is rolling out a new Diet Pepsi Slurpee today. The 0-calorie beverage is a first of its kind at 7-Eleven with a target consumer audience of…
Targeting Back-to-School Deals
WPXI 11, a local television station in Pittsburgh, went shopping for back-to-school supplies and found Target had lower prices than Wal-Mart, Staples, OfficeMax and Super Kmart. The items chosen were…
Layoffs Predicted
Optimism in the economy may be evident in recent retail sales figures and the performance of stocks, but the outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas is cautioning that unemployment may…
Albertsons-Savon Remodels Complete in El Paso
Albertsons says it has completed remodels to offer a complete food store and a complete drug store shopping experience under one roof at all eight of its El Paso, Tx…
Dude, You’ve Got Savings
Dell has announced price cuts of up to 22 percent on computers, printers and other items it sells. The move is not unusual for the company, according to a Reuters…
Credit Card Thief Caught, Say NC Authorities
Police in North Carolina have arrested a Maryland man on 10 counts of financial identity fraud, according to The Associated Press. Authorities claim the man was in possession of 1,700…
Walgreens Espanol Goes Online
Walgreens has become the first national pharmacy retailer to launch a Spanish language Web site to meet the needs of its Hispanic consumers. The new site will provide consumers with…
Why It’s More Important Than Ever Not to Be Overpriced
“Price continues to be an important element in the shopper’s value equation, but it’s not always clear what this means in today’s retail environment”, writes RetailWire BrainTrust panelist, Bill Bishop…
Starbucks Banks on New Location
The Albany Times Union reports Starbucks will open a full-service shop inside a branch of a Charter One bank next month. Charter One plans to keep the branch open from…
Creating the Shopping Experience
The Food Marketing Institute’s (FMI) Todd Hultquist says supermarkets ‘want consumers to think of shopping as fun, not a chore.’ One-way stores are looking to accomplish this goal is by…
The Low-carb Big Time
USA Today reports that the low-carb lifestyle has gone mainstream as millions abandon popular dietary wisdom in search of weight loss via bacon consumption. Specialty shops (200 and counting) are…
Association Calls For Blackout Relief
The Associated Food Dealers of Michigan are calling for $75 million in disaster relief for the state’s food industry to deal with the losses incurred as the result of last…
Slotting Fees Increase Duplication
Says RetailWire BrainTrust panelist Mark Boyer, “A lot of new items are making it onto the grocery shelves. Many shouldn’t be there. We are seeing an alarming rise in…
Coupon Counterfeiting Scam
Atlanta’s grocers took notice when shoppers tried to cash in computer-generated coupons giving them $150 in free merchandise, reports the city’s Journal-Constitution newspaper. The coupons, offering items such as Häagen-Dazs…
Message in a Box, Not a Bottle
Mokelumne Rim Vineyards has produced a super-premium, oak-barrel-aged zinfandel packaged in a box holding the equivalent of four 750-milliliter bottles. Marketed under the brand name, Le Cask, it retails for…
Zydeco is the Way to Go for McD’s
McDonald’s is opening a new restaurant in New Orleans, according to The Associated Press. The menu, however, will not include Big Macs. Chef Mac’s, a Cajun-style restaurant with an interior…
C-Store Sniper Strikes Again
Investigators in West Virginia are not willing to say three convenience store shooting incidents were connected, even though evidence appears to be pointing to the same weapon being used in…
Supermarket M&A Activity Up
The Food Institute says merger and acquisition activity was up in the supermarket industry in the first half of this year compared to 2002. In all, 20 M&A deals…
RFID for Improving Supply Chain – Period
A report on the CNET News.com Web site says Gillette is only interested in testing radio frequency identification (RFID) technology to improve supply chain operations. The company has no interest…
