May15
“Fairness” was the buzzword in this morning’s discussion on CNBC’s Squawk Box, as Staples founder and Guitar Center board member Tom Stremberg joined former Congressman Bill Delahunt (D-MA) and a small panel to discuss the trend of side-stepping sales tax by purchasing retail products online. And most on the panel agreed: Main Street retailers who [...]
Apr05
With U.S. employment projections for March streaming in, it seems the unemployment rate may hold steady at the thee-year low of 8.3 percent. That’s the addition of an average of 245,000 jobs a month over the first three months of the year. So which industries are leading the charge in this employment spike? It’s the [...]
Apr02
When NRF went searching for the “best retail story in America,” we knew we’d have our hands full picking from the sheer number of stories to tell (there are..oh, 28 million of them across the country). If this is the first you’re hearing about our This is Retail video contest, let me tell you what [...]
Feb20
You may have learned through recent advertising in retail trade pubs, dedicated outreach from NRF staff or from the massive chirping on Twitter: NRF has launched a nationwide video contest seeking the “best retail stories in America.” What’s in it for the winner? Well, national recognition, a $25,000 cash prize, and a trip to Washington [...]
Jan16
The retail analyst outlook for 2012? “Calm and clear,” according to Deborah Weinswig, Managing Director, Citi Investment Research. Retailers are back on the offense after a defensive few years. And many attributes of this switch are due to better investments in technology. This optimistic outlook, Weinswig shared, is the result of heavy technology investments during [...]
Jan16
Store 3.0 is already here. And retailers who are leveraging all channels and technologies are in a prime position to grab those essential sales from the highly-connected and savvy consumer. Let’s take a step back. What is Store 3.0? The initial retail experience, or Store 1.0 for our uses, is a traditional visit to brick-and-mortar [...]
Jan15
In North America alone, Coca-Cola products are consumed 1.7 billion times a day, are found in 94% of households and sold in 20 million outlets. Think a channel-customized consumer experience is out of the question? Think again. The executives at Coca-Cola also know all too well that shoppers these days have more choices than ever [...]
Jan14
Who’s pushing the envelope in retail store design, experience and concept? If you want to experience the answer to that first hand (like I did) you’ll need only to go so far as signing up for one of the handful of NRF-led store tours as a part of Retail’s BIG Show which officially kicks off [...]
Jan13
Ahead of Retail’s BIG Show next week, we reached out to DSW’s Harris Mustafa, Executive Vice President, Supply Chain and Merchandise Planning and Allocation, to talk to recent trends in the industry. Read below as Mustafa shares how DSW creates consumer loyalty through unparalleled value, how the company views the current “omnichannel” atmosphere and what he [...]
Nov17
Think the debate on online sales tax only applies to online retailers? Think again. From brick-and-mortar to multichannel to online pure plays, if you’re in retail, you need to know about three legislative proposals currently under consideration by Congress. Why? Because if passed, online sales tax collection changes will significantly impact your business, be it [...]
