New research reveals the best retail customer experiences of the year

January 19, 2009

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Retail Customer Experience magazine announced the publication of its inaugural Best Retail Customer Experiences report, a comprehensive…

Sears planning drive-thru, warehouse concept store

January 18, 2009

Display & Design Ideas: Sears Holdings Corp. plans to open a warehouse-style concept store in Joliet, Ill., called MyGofer. The store will allow shoppers…

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's Sonic Bar highlights retailing innovations

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

The high-concept concept store gave attendees a taste of retail's future — one that is available today.

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.

IBM, Sky IT help apparel companies follow consumer buying trends

January 10, 2009

ARMONK, N.Y. — IBM and Sky IT Group are helping fashion and apparel suppliers, like New York-based Theory, to more intelligently take advantage of consumer…

Curiosk wine kiosk offers specialty retailer the expertise of a sommelier

Wine can be intimidating to shop for, so the Riverstone Wine Shoppe turned to Curiosk Marketing Solutions’ wine kiosk to help assist and educate its customers.

Sports retailers embrace Microsoft Retail solutions

January 8, 2009

REDMOND, Wash. — Microsoft Corp. reported today that among its 305,000 Microsoft Dynamics customers worldwide, a growing percentage of professional sports…

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.

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."

New GameStop prototype store opened in Florida

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

December 21, 2008

A member of the gaming forum NeoGAF has stumbled upon a prototype store for the next generation of the GameStop shopping experience. Although he was told by…

Carphone Warehouse starts measuring customer experience

December 18, 2008

Retail Week: Carphone Warehouse is the latest retailer to work with Fizzback to assess the experience it provides to customers. Fizzback's technology allows…

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…