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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Checkout Rage
We’ve all been there. You’re in a hurry, waiting in line to checkout and something happens to slow the line down. The customer in front of you has brought 20…
Savings Quest 2003
The consumer quest to save has taken on new proportions and, as it turns out, it pays to cherry pick if you’re a retail shopper. That is the conclusion of…
Electronics Top Early Christmas Shopping Lists
While many consumers are waiting out retailers for even better deals on gifts for this holiday season, one category of products, consumer electronics, has defied the late-buying trend as shoppers…
Value, Location, Value
Retailers looking for business to improve once the economy fully kicks in may be waiting for an event that will not come, according to a new report from McKinsey &…
Kraft Makes Changes At The Top
The Associated Press reported Kraft Foods has demoted Betsy Holden from her position as co-chief executive officer of the company making Roger Deromedi the sole CEO. What does Roger Deromedi…
America: The Red, White and Zinfandel
The Two Buck Chuck craze and the health benefits associated with drinking wine are just two of the factors contributing to a steady increase in the amount of wine purchased…
Now You See the Store, Now You Don’t
It’s not enough to handle certain merchandise on an in and out basis anymore. Today, to be successful, retailers are finding they need to work on and in and out…
Specialty Roaster Com-Peet’s For Direct Delivery Biz
Peet’s Coffee & Tea announced yesterday it has re-launched its Web site, Peets.com (www.peets.com), “to accelerate sales within its direct delivery business.” Will the Peets.com redesigned Web site and direct…
McD’s Sells Off One Partner
McDonald’s announced yesterday it was selling the 182 unit Donatos Pizzeria chain back to the chain’s founder, James Grote, less than five years after it acquired the business. Will McDonald’s…
A Less Merry Christmas Shaping Up
Expectations were high heading into the 2003 holiday period as many retailers and manufacturers were looking to ring up solid gains for the season. The performance to date of bellwether…
Asda Says Covert Op Exposes Price Gouging
Asda, Wal-Mart’s division in the UK, is accusing competitors, Boots and Jessops, of taking advantage of consumers by charging up to 10 times its own rate to develop digital prints…
Slotting Fees Called Payola
Nicholas Pyle, president of the Independent Bakers Association, has strong feelings about slotting allowances and he’s not afraid to share them. “Slotting fees are just another form of payola, commercial…
Let The Discounting Begin
It doesn’t take long when sales are down for retailers to turn to special promotions and discounts as a means to drive consumer traffic and store sales. That’s why, despite…
Indy Dollar Stores Compete Against Big Guys
The large dollar store chains are growing quickly and independents in the channel are concerned about the impact that will have on their business, reports the Oregonian. Will independent, non-franchise…
Saddam Claus
They both wear long beards, but there was no mistaking the photos of Saddam Hussein, the disheveled former dictator of Iraq captured by US troops this weekend, for Santa Claus…
FDA Issues Warning on Mercury in Fish
The Food and Drug Administration has issued an advisory on the health risks associated with the consumption of certain types of fish including canned albacore tuna. Do stores selling fish…
Study: Lands’ End Most Customer Focused
Lands’ End has been named the winner of the first annual Online Retail Study for Customer Focused Excellence. The study sponsored by the marketing services boutique, Future Now, Inc. used…
Chief Execs More Concerned With Company Image
Jeffrey Resnick, executive vice president and director of Opinion Research’s corporate reputation practice, told Timothy Henderson, editor-in-chief, STORES magazine, “We no longer live in a world where, as business leaders,…
Cheeseburger, Cheeseburger, Cheeseburger Fry
The old Saturday Night Live skit with John Belushi working a lunch-counter, offering consumers anything they want as long as it is a cheeseburger, might have a slightly different script…
Public Sympathetic To Union
Experts interviewed for a Christian Science Monitor piece say the general public may be more inclined to support the position of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) than…
Web Sites More Consumer Friendly
Online sales are off to a strong start for the holiday season and part of that is due to consumers being more comfortable with the process of ordering goods over…
