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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Do consumers want experiential rewards?
In March, Kayla Watters, a Kohl’s Yes2You Rewards member, participated in a fashion shoot in Palm Springs to support the just-launched LC Lauren Conrad Festival Collection. Her modeling debut came,…
Will personalized meal plans increase Peapod’s order sizes?
Peapod has partnered with DinnerTime.com, a subscription-based personalized meal recommendation service, to link meal planning to the sales flyer. What do you think of the appeal of DinnerTime and such…
Will retailers get cut out by consumers in the future economy?
Thanks to an obscure international trade deal made a few years ago, the growing direct-to-consumer trend might become more prevalent, if the hypothesis in a recent New York Times article…
What is holding back marketers’ personalization efforts?
A survey of digital marketers by Evergage found that e-mail (72 percent) and websites (57 percent) are the only channels in which a majority of respondents are using personalization. Are…
Will redirecting its focus from stores help Staples’ top and bottom lines?
Staples is launching the first marketing campaign in its history that doesn’t focus on the office supply chain’s retail business. Instead, the “Staples – It’s Pro Time” rebranding campaign will…
How can companies avoid the seven deadly sins of retail laggards?
For years we’ve talked about the train coming that is now steamrolling some of our country’s most iconic retail brands. Blame the leaders — they were warned and they didn’t…
How will passage of the overtime pay bill affect retailers and workers?
The House of Representatives has passed HR 1180, otherwise known as the Working Families Flexibility Act of 2017. The legislation gives employers the option to allow workers to take paid…
Should retailers and restaurants post calorie info no matter what the FDA decides?
While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is holding up rules requiring businesses that sell prepared foods to post signage with calorie counts, some chains have decided to display the…
Are malls better off without department stores?
According to research from JLL Retail, many malls are finding few challenges replacing department stores as anchors. What’s more, the new tenants generally pay much higher rent. Do you see…
Should one rough quarter have Publix’s management concerned?
Publix saw its same-store sales decline 0.4 percent in the first quarter of 2017, the first time the grocer has experienced a drop in that metric going back to 2009…
Will Five Below strike gold in California?
Five Below, the retailer that serves as magnet for pre-teens, teens and quite a few adults, as well, is moving westward as part of its plan to grow its store…
Will consumers finally pay for service?
Retailers might think they’ll know when they reach the point where consumers say, “Enough! I will pay for better service,” but the reality is, there’s a lag between when consumers…
Will giving associates mobile devices enhance the shopping experience?
Mobile devices continue to change the way consumers find information and shop retail stores and websites. The corresponding effect, according to a new BRP report, is that mobile devices are…
Can UPS get retailers to share in delivery costs?
United Parcel Service (UPS) wants retailers to get their shipping acts together and to pay more when they don’t, according to a Wall Street Journal report. What is the state…
Is omnichannel a retail margin crusher?
On the surface, omnichannel sounds like a panacea to bolster sales. But an analysis by AlixPartners provided to CNBC suggests some channels are far costlier than stores. Do you agree…
Should Amazon’s third-party sellers worry about Amazon?
Many sellers on Amazon Marketplace are heavily reliant on the platform and yet their top-three fears all concern the e-tail giant. Should third-party sellers simply try to ride Amazon’s success…
How can small retailers avoid the seven reasons most fail?
While the economy and online competition often takes the blame when neighborhood boutiques closes, the owners in most instances were in over their head. Yes, barriers to starting a business…
Will Amazon’s Echo Look be a clothes selling machine?
Amazon.com’s new Echo Look will handle all of the tasks that previously introduced models have done, but what stands out is that it also comes with a camera enabling users…
Will chatbots drive a ‘conversational commerce’ trend?
Some big names are trying out a method of leveraging Facebook Messenger to facilitate purchases, foregoing both websites and retailer apps. Will customers take to interacting with chatbots to meet…
Has North Face reached a summit in consumer segmentation?
To enhance segmentation efforts, The North Face last year introduced a new “consumer territory model” strategy to define the many ways consumers are experiencing its brand. What advice would you…
Is Walmart’s Store No. 8 breaking boundaries or bonds with its core customers?
Last month at Shoptalk 2017, the company disclosed its intent to accelerate and nurture its application of cutting edge technologies with a Silicon Valley-based incubator. Do you think Walmart is…
