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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Building Employee Loyalty
Sally Rynne, chief executive officer and founder of Health Newsletters Direct Inc., credits the success of her company to “attracting star performers and keeping them.” How can companies put the…
COOL Alternative In The Works
The United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association (UFFVA), National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), National Fisheries Institute (NFI), Food Marketing Institute (FMI) and National Grocers Association…
Whole Foods Gets Fresh & Wild
Whole Foods announced on Friday it will buy Fresh & Wild, a small natural foods grocer operating seven stores in the UK. The acquisition marks Whole Foods first venture overseas…
RedEnvelope Gets Too Much of a Good Thing
Of all the items that make the list of things you can have too much of, business is not usually near the top. For RedEnvelope, the luxury gift e-tailer, however,…
Commercials Go Online
Marketers, including Pepsi, McDonald’s and AT&T, will begin showing commercials produced for television online through a new format from Unicast using Microsoft’s Media technology. What do you see as the…
U.S. Wants Obesity Fight Plan Changed
The Bush administration has asked the World Health Organization (WHO) to make changes to its plan to reduce obesity throughout the world because it considers many of the recommendations being…
Kash n’ Karry Kuts Store Kount
The Kash n’ Karry division of Delhaize America announced it was closing 34 of its stores in Florida as part of its plan to turn its business around. What are…
Target Puts Signature on Levi’s Deal
Target has made a me-too move with the announcement it would sell Levi Strauss’ discount store line of jeans under the Signature brand. Wal-Mart has carried the Signature brand since…
Shopper Loyalty Not in the Cards
Many consumers in the UK fail to see the value of having a loyalty card and either don’t use them at all or fail to redeem rewards associated with their…
Study: Few Think Retailers Committed to Service
A new nationwide telephone study from Novations Group, reports only 28 percent of consumers believe retailers are committed to providing a high level of service. Does it cost a retailer…
Marsh Goes Smaller
A report in the Indianapolis Star says Marsh Supermarkets is creating a smaller 20,000 square foot store concept to meet the needs of consumers in growing communities. Which grocery operators…
Frito-Lay Cuts The Carbs
Frito-Lay announced yesterday it would rollout a new line of lower-carb tortilla chips nationally by May. How will the rollout of low-carb versions of tier one and two brands impact…
Republicans Want to Abstain From Morning After Pill
A group of 49 House Republicans have written to President Bush asking him to order the Food and Drug Administration to reject a proposal to approve the “morning after” pill…
Sick Workplace Habits
While employers frown on workers who take sick days, there is plenty of evidence to suggest that there would be fewer workers calling in sick if more people were unwilling…
Kodak Goes Digital
Eastman Kodak announced yesterday that it would stop selling traditional film cameras in North America and Western Europe to focus exclusively on digital hardware. What are your thoughts on Kodak’s…
Good Job Hunting
A new survey from CareerBuilder.com, Trends in Retail, says forty-six percent of retail workers plan on looking for a new job this year. The common complaints of low pay, unsatisfying…
Consumer Engine In Danger of Running Out of Gas
It’s often said that consumer activity is the engine that drives the American economy. If that’s true, than ready credit is often the fuel that keeps the engine running, which…
Life Sciences: Should We Do It Because We Can?
At this week’s FMI Midwinter Executive Conference, Juan Enriquez, founding director of Harvard Business School’s Life Science Project, made the case for pushing forward with life sciences, in spite of…
Group Wants Gun Dealer List Made Public
Guns used in a crime often come from illegal sources. In other instances, however, as in the case of 120 stores across 22 states, people later involved in criminal activity…
METRO brings Future Store to New York
The METRO Group, the world’s fifth-largest retailer, recreated the technologies deployed and even a bit of the look of its Future Store located in Rheinberg, Germany on the show floor…
Harris Teeter Looks to Build Capital
A report in the Washington Business Journal says Harris Teeter is about to sign a deal to place its first store in the nation’s capital. What will Harris Teeter’s opening…
