Here, take the keys – a story of above-and-beyond customer service

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

If you attended the Retail Customer Experience Executive Summit this summer, you got to spend some time with our vice president of events, Bobby Renaud. (If…

ALDI opening its first in-mall location

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

September 15, 2010

The Westfield Chicago Ridge shopping center, an 800,000 sq. ft. mall located outside of Chicago, announced today it will add a 20,000 sq. ft. ALDI grocery…

Walmart now offering branded mobile phone service

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

September 13, 2010

Walmart has announced the launch of Walmart Family Mobile, a wireless phone service powered by T-Mobile. Phones and service will be available in 2,500 Walmart…

The new SEO: How Google Instant will impact online retail

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

The search giant has drastically changed the way it delivers search results. Will it change the way people find products online?

Amazon Mom program targets deals to mothers of young children

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

September 8, 2010

Amazon.com announced the launch of its Amazon Mom program, an opt-in loyalty program limited to parents and caregivers of children from prenatal through the…

Amazon challenges GameStop, others with release-day delivery

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

September 8, 2010

Online retail giant Amazon.com is getting more aggressive in its head-to-head competition with bricks-and-mortar retailers. The company tackled bookstores with…

Update: Plastic bag ban fails in California

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

September 1, 2010

The Associated Press reports that California lawmakers have rejected Senate bill AB 1998, which would have banned the use of plastic shopping bags in retail…

GameStop pulls video game that lets players be the Taliban

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

September 1, 2010

Video game industry site Kotaku reports that retailer GameStop has elected not to sell or advertise the upcoming Electronic Arts game "Medal of Honor" in its…

What will bookstores look like in five years?

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

The proliferation of e-readers is fundamentally changing the value proposition of bookselling.

California set to vote on plastic bag ban

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

Proponents of the bill point to environmental benefits, while detractors decry possible loss of jobs.

Poll: Consumers divided on plastic bag ban

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 29, 2010

With the California Senate getting ready for a vote on AB 1998, which would outlaw the use of plastic bags in retail stores, we surveyed our consumer advisory…

Visa, B of A testing cell phone payments

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 19, 2010

Reuters reports that Bank of America and Visa have entered a partnership to begin testing a plan that will allow shoppers to make payments with their smart…

Best Retail Customer Experiences 2010 winners announced

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

More than 1,000 consumers voted on the best retail experiences in eight segments and across multiple attributes.

Q&A: Rand Nickerson, OpinionLab

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

The inventor of an iconic web feedback mechanism talks about the future of online retail.

A tale of two Apple fans

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

I've so far resisted the urge to add to the number of electrons spilled over the whole iPhone 4 debacle, but a couple of very different reactions to the…

NCR and its 'c-tailing' revolution

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

The company's new approach is as much a philosophy of retail as it is a suite of hardware and software.

Retail Roundtable: Sam's Club offering SBA loans

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

Is this a natural extension of the brand, or is the company overextending itself and getting away from its retail roots?

Top 100: 1,2.The economy/gas prices

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

Call it two different sides of the same lack of coin: The first and second place finishers in our survey of the 2009's movers, shakers, brands and trends are…

Deal-of-the-day pioneer Woot acquired by Amazon

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

The iconoclastic online retailer takes an extremely unusual approach in making the announcement.

Pennsylvania's new wine kiosks get panned

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

A massive new kiosk that dispenses wine by the bottle is being met with ridicule in oenophile circles.