The world, just at this moment, is riveted by the spectacle of a precariously balanced high wire act in something approximating Hunger Games cum Circus Maximus. We are all watching. We cannot look away. Each day comes new news and […]
Retail Could Become the Hunger Games Read More »
Q&A with Andy Mantis, EVP of NPD’s Checkout Tracking℠ Anyone who’s anyone in retail is familiar with NPD’s market research prowess, backed by the firm’s powerful consumer panel and point-of-sale data. But less well known is the firm’s legacy of
Thinking Inside the Basket Read More »
Here is one more glaring example of the absurd and frankly, stupid “short-termism” of Wall Street and the investment community. Doug McMillon, Walmart’s relatively new CEO, its youngest ever at age 49 and its first merchant-chief since Sam Walton, recently
Walmart – “It’s The Right Thing To Do” Read More »
Retailers Must Hope for a Lot of Blind-Hope Consumers It’s speculation season again, a time to hope that consumers will temporarily forget about the economic mess around the world, as well as in their own homes, and charge forth to spend like drunken sailors
Holiday, Schmoliday Read More »
Enabling an Omnichannel Inventory Management Strategy While today’s consumer has dramatically changed, most retailers are still relying on inventory management tactics that are stuck in the past. Some of the world’s best-known retailers have learned this lesson the hard way
Fulfilling the Availability Promise Read More »
Pardon my ‘60s pot metaphors of late. There’s just maniacal, seemingly drug-induced behavior happening and it seems to be going viral across many industries. In particular, I think there’s a lot of legalized pot being passed around among Internet start-ups,
Jet.com: Reefer Madness Read More »
My friends gave me a golf shirt for my birthday. Not just any golf shirt, but an “energy enhancing” shirt that employs “intelligent fabric powered by IonX,” providing increased power, thus presumably promoting a better score when playing golf. Here’s
Worn Out From Wearables Read More »
“Personal Commerce” and Preemptive Distribution There are two strategic concepts that are imperative for any consumer-facing business to achieve success in the 21st century: personalization and preemptive distribution. As former Apple executive, Ron Johnson’s Genius Bar creation and Apple’s entire
When the Department of Commerce began tracking online sales in 1998, e-commerce made up about only 0.2 percent of all retail sales. By 2013, online sales had increased 50-fold. If that’s not enough to rattle brick-and-mortar retailers, note that at
By Design: The Studio Xfinity Experience Read More »
Affordable luxury is a slightly baffling concept, especially for the Millennial generation. Defining luxury itself is a challenge since we are talking about a service, location, experience or item that is of the highest quality achievable, irrespective of price. But
Redefining Affordable Luxury For Millennials Read More »
