Featured News
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Dollar Tree Rolls Out New Family Dollar Store Layouts And Private Label Brands
6/6/2017
Dollar Tree is preparing to roll out new store layouts and private label brands across its Family Dollar discount chain as part of its recovery plan, according to Supermarket News. According to Dollar Tree CEO Bob Sasser, a brand called Home Line will replace Family Dollar-branded household products, while private label candies will now be under the name Katoomba Candy Co.
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Retailers Can Leverage Smart Phone Use To Attract Shoppers, Study Finds
6/5/2017
“The First Dibs Opportunity” study shows that 47 percent of usage session start with no real aim.
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Sears Sees First Quarterly Profit Since 2015
6/3/2017
In its recent first quarter holdings report, Sears Holdings Corporation demonstrated that its cost-cutting measures are starting to have an impact: the company saw its first profits in nearly two years: Q1 net income was $244 million, or earnings of $2.28 per diluted share, up from its net loss in the year-ago quarter of $471 million, or $4.41 per diluted share.
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Target Agrees To Pay $18.5 Million To Settle 2013 Data Breach Claims
6/2/2017
Target has announced that it is ready to pay out a bulk settlement of $18.5 million for distribution among 47 state governments and Washington, D.C., according to Reuters, as it attempts to resolve all claims related to the 2013 holiday shopping season data breach. The incident left approximately 40 million cardholders vulnerable in the wake of the breach that occurred between November 27 and December 15, 2013, as Innovative Retail Technologies reported.
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Home Depot Outshines Lowe’s In First Quarter Sales
6/1/2017
Lowe’s has spent the last year actively shaking up its organization in an effort to differentiate itself and capitalize on opportunities in the home improvement industry, and those changes have paid off with a 10.7 percent year-over-year increase in net sales for quarter one. Despite the growth, however, those figures fall short of analyst expectations, reaching just $16.9 billion compared to projected $19.5 billion in sales, according to data from Thomson Reuters. And while the numbers were good, they were not quite good enough to overtake industry leader Home Depot.
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AI Predicted To Be In Use By Almost Half Of All Retailers By 2020
5/31/2017
Savvy retailers know that the future of customer services lies in the implementation of innovative technologies like artificial intelligence, according to the 2017 Customer Experience/ Unified Commerce Survey results from BRP. In fact, 55 percent of retailers are focused on optimizing the customer experience – and thus boost customer loyalty – through the use of technology to improve the mobile shopping experience and create a unified cross-channel experience.
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Walmart Investing Heavily In Store Remodels To Ease Pick Up Of Online Orders
5/30/2017
As the retail giant boosts its investment in digital operations, Walmart also is investing millions of dollars in the remodeling of between 400 and 640 physical stores in an effort to meet customer demands for more efficient fulfillment options, according to a report from MLive Media Group. Improvements include physical alterations like widening aisles; improving sight-lines by lowering shelves and boosting signage; moving pickup service locations to the front of stores and creating lounge areas for those picking up online orders.
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Lowe’s And Virginia Tech Partner To Develop New Lift-Assist Robotic Suit Technology
5/26/2017
Lowe’s and Virginia Tech have developed a new wearable robotic suit with lift-assist technology that helps employees lift and carry merchandise through the store more efficiently and with less change of repetitive injuries. The exosuit is now being piloted at Lowe’s Christiansburg, Virginia store, and it was a product of Lowe’s Innovation Lab.
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Two Walmart Supercenters Test High-Tech Features To Boost Customer Experience
5/25/2017
Walmart is currently “testing new approaches in two recently opened supercenters" in Tomball, TX, and Lake Nona, FL featuring new layouts and technology to improve the shopping experience, according to a corporate blog post written by Jeff Muench, senior director of Business Development. The pilot is designed to see how new features can help boost the overall customer experience and help raise sales.
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TeleRetail Offers Up New Robot For Long-Range Deliveries
5/24/2017
A new robotic prototype from Swiss company Teleretail AG would be capable of traveling distances up to 50 miles to deliver goods, expanding the potential for suburban and rural delivery applications, according to TechCrunch.