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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Store Brands: How High Can They Go?
According to the Food Institute, 80 percent of private/store label sales are being driven by 20 percent of the categories where these products have a presence. How do retailers find…
Mystery Shoppers Do Reconnaissance
It’s like a scene from Dirty Harry, minus the facial grimacing, gritted teeth and background music. A shopper pushes a cart up to a checkout and the cashier hears a…
IKEA Grows In The Midwest
A piece in the Chicago Tribune says Bolingbrook’s (Il.) gain is Chicago’s loss. The loss referred to is the decision by the Swedish furniture retailer, IKEA, to build its newest…
Reinventing Kash ‘n Karry
The changes taking place at Kash n’ Karry are more than giving a new name to its stores (Sweetbay Supermarket), say those inside the company. What will the new Sweetbay…
Gays and Lesbians: The Latest Emerging Market?
While the issue of gay marriage has emerged as one of the hot-button issues in this election year, corporate America and others are seeing opportunity. For years, many had ignored…
Retail Politics
The upcoming party conventions in New York and Boston, as well as yesterday’s announcement that John Kerry has selected Sen. John Edwards (D – NC) to be his running mate…
Food Protection and Defense Center Launched
The Secretaries of the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced yesterday that the Homeland Security National Center for Post-harvest Food Protection and Defense would be…
Customers Told, “You’re Fired!”
Larry Selden, co-author of Angel Customers & Demon Customers, says retailers need to face up to a hard fact. “There are those customers that are just evil customers… fundamentally…
Grocer Doing What It Needs To Survive
The president and chief operating officer of Minyard Food Stores, J.L. “Sonny” Williams, said larger retail competitors have a luxury this Dallas-Ft. Worth-area grocer doesn’t. “The larger chains have other…
Buy Now, Pay Later Online
Although credit cards are still the payment method of choice, e-tailers are finding ways to offer the one in five adults without plastic, or those who simply don’t want to…
Protecting Privacy is Rewarded with Loyalty
A study conducted by the Poneman Institute and the nonprofit TRUSTe organization uncovered the importance of trust among customers. “This survey shows that companies that make privacy a core value…
Big G To Rationalize Skus
As a retailer once told us, the average manufacturer’s idea of sku rationalization is to explain why a store should open up space for three new items after it has…
Wawa More Convenient For Grocery Shopping
Most stories about supermarkets losing share to a competitor involve a big box such as a Wal-Mart Supercenter or Costco. The story in the Philadelphia, Pa. area is different, however,…
Retailtainment News: Wal-Mart Rocks
Looking for something to do tonight? Why not catch Avril Lavigne in concert. She’ll be playing at your local Wal-Mart. Beginning tonight and continuing on select Friday nights throughout the…
Sony Says iPod, iSchmod
It doesn’t seem that long ago while walking or jogging you would see plenty of people connected to a Sony Walkman. Times have changed, however, and today you’re just as…
Kmart’s New Bluelight Special Is Real Estate
Kmart’s got an aggressive sales push going on. No, it isn’t on its exclusive Martha Stewart Everyday or Joe Boxer lines. It’s on the retailer’s property holdings. What are your…
Study: RFID Will Eliminate Four Million Jobs
The Good News: A study by the Yankee Group says the implementation of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology will greatly improve supply chain efficiency. The Bad News: The same research…
Diets Never Last
Ninety-five percent of those who go on a diet fail in the attempt, which may help explain why “new” plans to lose weight seem to appear out of nowhere on…
Trading Partners: Synchronize Your Data
Nick Parnaby, chief marketing officer of the WorldWide Retail Exchange (WWRE), says trading partners are not getting all the benefits they should from data synchronization. Are trading partners not getting…
Still Making Sense: Timeless Ethnic Merchandising Best Practices, Part 2
Five “best practices” are outlined in the study Grow with America – Best Practices in Ethnic Merchandising and Marketing sponsored by the Coca Cola Retailing Research Council. In this discussion,…
Winn-Dixie Tries Warehouse Approach
With Wal-Mart’s Supercenters and Neighborhood Markets breathing down its neck, not to mention competition from the likes of Publix, Kash ‘n Karry, Albertsons, etc. in Florida, Winn-Dixie is looking for…
