New Balance opens Boston 'Experience' store

April 13, 2012

New Balance is stepping up its game with a new 2,500-square-foot high-tech store at Copley Square in Boston that opens today. The store features artistic…

Gucci unveils mobile POS program

April 12, 2012

Gucci sales associates at select U.S., Europe and Asia locations are equipped with personal Apple iPhone 4S devices to provide shoppers with a more convenient…

Bragability

by Doug Fleener — President and Managing Partner, Dynamic Experiences Group, LLC

Bragging is usually regarded as a less-than-admirable quality in a person, but I actually enjoy hearing people blow his/her own horn. Excessive self-importance…

Why pet stores are thriving

April 9, 2012

Pet stores are thriving, and some retail experts think it's because they are catering to pet owners who treat their animals like family members, Joanna Felder…

GNC upgrades phone app to enhance store experience

April 9, 2012

GNC Holdings Inc., the nation's largest specialty retailer of health and wellness products, has enhanced its new iPhone app and has also made it available to…

Study: French e-commerce growing despite delivery kinks

April 6, 2012

Although 91 percent of French consumers shopped online over the past year, 27 percent asked for a refund at least once because of delivery hassles, according…

Roundup: How to deliver 'knock your socks off' customer service

Enjoy these excerpts from the customer service classic that recently turned 20.

The Container Store adds 'real-time listening' via OpinionLab

March 29, 2012

OpinionLab today announced that The Container Store, retailer of storage and organization products, is using OpinionLab multichannel feedback solutions to…

For retail, honesty is the only policy

Misleading customers leads to far worse problems than telling them something unpleasant they need to hear right now.

Biometrics makes tanning quick, easy at NY salon

March 19, 2012

Customers of Zoom Tan, a tanning salon chain in New York and Florida, can pay for sessions and sign in with a touch of a finger now that the salon has…

Are independent hardware stores ready for a comeback?

by Bob Phibbs — CEO, The Retail Doctor

Do you remember being at a bowling alley or supermarket and seeing the old claw game? The one where you navigate the joystick in hopes of manipulating the claw…

Video game retailers merge to dominate Canadian market

March 15, 2012

Play N Trade, the world's largest video game retail franchisor, is expanding in Canada through a merger with Canadian-based Dimensions Games Corporation.

Why timeliness and responsiveness are crucial for retail

The best time for anything is the time that is best for the customer.

Follow-up for success

by Doug Fleener — President and Managing Partner, Dynamic Experiences Group, LLC

A few years ago I presented a seminar to around one hundred retailers. These people run stores whose products have a fairly high price point; they often offer…

Why you should never ask customers how much they're looking to spend

by Harry Friedman

You go shopping. You're looking for a gift. A salesperson, trying to deter­mine what merchandise to show you, asks, "How much do you want to spend?" You say…

Retail Bracket Madness - cast your vote!

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

Which retailer provides the best customer experience? Cast your votes today!

Walgreen may hire more disabled workers

March 9, 2012

Walgreen Co. is piloting a program to hire cognitively and physically disabled employees in its stores across the country, according to a story on…

Loyalty Limelight: Bloomingdale's rewards customers without credit

by Bryan Pearson — President, LoyaltyOne

The program: Bloomingdale's Loyallist Program

The fundamentals of employee feedback

by Peggy Carlaw — VP, Impact Learning Systems

Giving feedback to your employees is one of the most important things you can do for each of them individually, and your team as a whole. Oftentimes, managers…

Speakers, agenda announced for Retail Customer Experience Executive Summit

The third annual event is set to convene at Hotel Sax in Chicago on August 6-8, 2012.