aggregatedcontent

Black Friday may still be crowded down at the mall, but this year more of America’s holiday shopping is going to happen online, says Forrester Research.

The Mobile Marketing Association released the October 2010 U.S. Mobile Consumer Briefing, and found that 59 percent of mobile consumers plan to use their mobile phone for holiday shopping and planning holiday celebrations.

U.S. retailers can expect more people to try to return stolen merchandise this holiday season, according to a National Retail Federation (NRF) report released Tuesday. The NRF predicts that the cost of those fraudulent returns will reach $3.68 billion during the holiday season, a 34% jump from the $2.74 billion cost last year.

Talbots will use the Oracle Retail Planning and Optimization suite of applications to help identify customer preferences and localize its merchandise offerings based on buying patterns, size profiles and other key attributes.

There is a lot of consumer excitement around new tech products this holiday season. According to our latest research, 56 percent of shoppers are planning to buy computer related gifts, 50 percent plan to purchase electronics and 13 percent of them plan to purchase electronics online.

Retailers increased their inventory purchases by an average of 2.8 percent for the coming holidays, according to a survey by accounting and consulting firm BDO USA, released Tuesday.

Toys"R"Us has launched a number of new mobile-based capabilities for shoppers to take advantage of store promotions, including a coupon barcode scanning technology. The retailer's new services include: "Mobile phones are an integral part of busy moms' and dads' lifestyles and we are always looking for exciting new ways to engage and present them with the most streamlined, on-the-go shopping solutions," says Prama Bhatt

Women’s apparel retailer Cache reported Wednesday that it narrowed its loss for the quarter ended Oct.2 to $5 million, compared with a loss of $6.8 million in the year-ago quarter. Revenue rose 1.3% to $45.5 million, from $44.9 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2009. Same-store sales were flat, as compared with a decrease of 21.7% in the prior year.Thomas Reinckens, chairman and CEO, said: “As we begin the important holiday season, we recognize that the environment remains challenging and as such we will continue to focus on our key merchandising initiatives while reducing promotional offers as compared

Nov. 05--Middle- and low-income consumers are turning into "appointment shoppers." When they need something, they will come. But in October, an off month wedged between retail's two busiest times of the year, back-to-school and holiday, shoppers seemed to pause -- especially when warmer weather meant they didn't yet need new coats and sweaters, analysts said. Teen retailers Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle Outfitters and Aeropostale disappointed, as did department store chains J.C. Penney and Kohl's. But high-end retailers Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue fared better, said Amy Noblin, analyst at Weeden & Co. "Business improved at the

Two big names—Macy's and Facebook—have teamed up for a location-based marketing program, offering special discounts to customers in Macy's stores that check in using