Shopper marketing finally getting respect it deserves

January 18, 2009

Adweek: While 21 million people waltzed over to their sets to watch an average episode of Dancing With the Stars last year, and American Idol cast its spell on…

NRF sees green with eco-friendly concept store

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

At this year's Big Show, attendees got a glimpse of what a truly environmentally friendly store might look like, and how it would operate.

Microsoft opens new Retail Experience Center

The fully functional store environment will serve as an incubator for customer experience ideas and technologies.

NRF: Clarity unveils POS 'Innovation Lane'

January 12, 2009

NEW YORK — Clarity Consulting today presented its "Innovation Lane" — a new POS technology concept system featuring Windows Embedded POSReady 2009 and unified…

NRF: Outgoing Wal-Mart CEO stresses opportunity

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

H. Lee Scott, Jr. emphasizes an upcoming period of opportunity for both the nation and the retail industry.

Shoppers willing to pay more for products they can touch

A new study suggests that consumer desire for a product is intensified at the moment of first contact.

Shoe retailer rolling out massive POS upgrade

January 6, 2009

RICHARDSON, Texas — Fujitsu Transaction Solutions Inc. announced today that Genesco Inc., a leading North American shoe and headwear retailer, will upgrade…

Smaller stores honoring gift cards from large retailers

January 5, 2009

The Toledo Blade: For the fourth year, Culture Clash, a Toledo, Ohio, store that sells CDs, records, and pop culture merchandise, is accepting gift cards of…

Top 10 customer experience resolutions for the New Year

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

January 4, 2009

Bruce Temkin, customer experience blogger and vice president with Forrester Research, has just published his Top 10 resolutions companies should be making in…

Store traffic reporting - are new tools needed?

Commentator Judy Hopelain says retail traffic numbers are conflicting, and possibly part of a "massive undercount."

Photo gallery: The retail windows of Christmas 2008

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

The retail window display is a fixture of holiday merchandising, and nobody does it better than New York City.

RFID-based 'magic mirror' coming to UK retail

December 17, 2008

The Future of Things: Paxar Corporation and the Italian "TheBigSpace" design firm have recently announced a collaborative initiative under which the two will…

How retail can benefit from social media

December 17, 2008

The Gourmet Retailer: For some retailers, social media is proving to be a valuable tool for engaging consumers, driving sales and building customer loyalty…

Unbound releases mobile retailing platform

December 16, 2008

NEWTON, Mass. — Unbound Commerce has released its Unbound Mobile Presence platform for retailers, giving them the power to connect with their increasingly…

Independent retailers tout their differences this holiday

December 14, 2008

Indianapolis Business Journal: Unlike their larger counterparts, locally owned merchants aren't pushing deep discounts to lure shoppers through their doors.

Five ways to reduce product returns

When customers return products, look to the source to find out why and put a stop to it.

Lagging economy means fewer seasonal jobs

December 4, 2008

The Virginian-Pilot: As the troubled economy has dragged down sales, many retailers have curtailed hiring for the holiday season, expecting to handle less…

Consumer desire driving green retail IT

Shoppers increasingly value transparency, sustainability when making buying decisions.

Marketing show heavy on innovation

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

Fresh ideas from the In-Store Marketing Expo in Las Vegas.

Sephora chooses RedPrairie for warehouse management

November 18, 2008

MILWAUKEE — RedPrairie Corp. announced today its Warehouse Management solution is running in cosmetics retailer Sephora's new Salt Lake City distribution…