Personalization, physical-digital integration dominating retail innovation

by Elliot Maras — Editor, Kiosk Marketplace & Vending Times

Recognizing the need for both physical stores and e-commerce, retailers seek solutions — including self-serve kiosks — to deliver more interactive customer…

5 ways AI can do the heavy lifting in the retail customer experience

Katrina Gosek, senior director, digital customer product strategy at Oracle, explains why success in the next era of retail won't come from adding the latest…

Macy expanding off-price outlet strategy

April 13, 2018

Macy's, in a bid to lure price-conscious consumers, plans to open 100 Backstage location across the nation this year.

Nordstrom launches men's store in Manhattan

April 12, 2018

History is being made this week as Nordstrom's launches its first-ever Manhattan, New York store.

Watch out Amazon Go, China's BingoBox is on the move

by Elliot Maras — Editor, Kiosk Marketplace & Vending Times

BingoBox, an unmanned c-store, already has 300 locations in China, and plans to expand internationally. The project has received significant venture funding.

A new purpose for in-store retail in 2018: customer delight

Justin Jones and Ashley Welch, co-founders of Somersault Innovation, explain the focus of in-store retail and why it's all about creating 'Cathy' moments -…

Boxed debuts membership program

April 11, 2018

Boxed customers wanting lower shipping fees and bigger price breaks are going to have to pay as the e-commerce grocery site is deploying an annual membership…

Kagan: E-commerce threat gives retail a choice - fight or die

by Jeff KAGAN — Wireless Analyst, Telecom Industry Analyst

Analyst and blogger Jeff Kagan believes retail must cannibalize itself or new competitors like Amazon Go and Whole Foods will eat them alive. There is no…

Walmart mulling PillPack delivery service acquisition, claim reports

April 9, 2018

In yet another move to expand way beyond typical retailing Walmart is reportedly mulling the acquisition of medication delivery player PillPack.

Apple hires on ex-Google AI chief

April 9, 2018

Google is down one artificial intelligence guru thanks to Apple.

If Kroger had a hammer: 7 ways an Ace deal would change the form of grocery

by Bryan Pearson — President, LoyaltyOne

Bryan Pearson maps out seven ways a mini-mall within a store retail strategy would change the shopper's path to purchase.

5 retail lessons learned from the upcoming lingerie wars

by Chris Petersen — Owner, IMS

As Chris Petersen sees it everything and every aspect of retail is being disrupted and reinvented.

Octopus extends merchant acceptance via NFC-enabled mPOS app

April 6, 2018

Octopus Cards Limited has launched a new feature to enhance the Octopus App for Business, enabling merchants to accept Octopus card payment through their NFC…

Mall of America embracing chatbot to boost retail customer experience

by Judy Mottl — Editor, RetailCustomerExperience.com & DigitalSignageToday.com

The Mall of America's limited chatbot experience led to a more robust deployment this past holiday season and is part of the mall's overall digital technology…

Sears, Kmart, Delta customer data hit in cyber attack on software provider

April 5, 2018

The payment data of Sears, Kmart and Delta Air Lines customers may have been compromised in a cybersecurity attack on a software service provider.

Mobile payment: Redefining the customer experience for unattended retail

by Elliot Maras — Editor, Kiosk Marketplace & Vending Times

One of the best-attended educational sessions at the recent National Automatic Merchandising Association show in Las Vegas focused on how payment technology…

4 trends retailers should be prepared for this year

Kurt Heinemann, CMO at Reflektion, shares his insight on what he expects will be the important retail trends in 2018 and beyond.

What apocalypse? Why we're going through a retail Ragnarök

Glenn Shoosmith, CEO and founder of BookingBug, says the clearest evidence that there is no retail apocalypse is the fact we're seeing some of the most…

Saks, Lord & Taylor offer free credit monitoring service following breach

April 3, 2018

In the wake of a data breach, Saks Fifth Avenue and Lord & Taylor are offering consumers a free credit monitoring service.

Apparel retailers invest in online experience, customer satisfaction

Sunil Mirani, co-founder and CEO at Ugam, explains why successful retailers are those using data to deliver personalization in a meaningful way. They are not…