Leadership

Last year at eTail West, it was 85 degrees. Retailers and technology vendors that attended this year’s event were greeted with clouds and temperatures in the 50s, but we made the best of it by enjoying the outdoor parties huddled around fire pits with warm cocktails. As usual, eTail offered great content, fun events and…

The digital transformation has been building up for decades, yet some businesses are slow to embrace change. Many leaders may not see the threat of this paradigm shift because they still see profit, but they need to look to technology as a catalyst in future plans. This technological era is so critical, demanding and fast-moving that if these leaders fail to understand how they can leverage IoT for their company’s benefit, they're in danger of becoming the next Kodak or Nokia.

We will be featuring Women in Retail Leadership Circle members, advisory board members and ladies who lead in Inner Circle Q&As over the next several months. The interviews will highlight what makes our community so special, from their leadership styles to their favorite vacation spots and everything in between. This week’s Q&A is with Jasmine Bellamy, global product strategist, Gap Factory.

In a keynote presentation at eTail West in Palm Springs, Calif., earlier this week, Noam Paransky, senior vice president, digital, Gap Inc., detailed how the retailer has transformed its organization to better position itself to serve today’s omnichannel consumers. Gap was one of the first mall-based retailers to have an e-commerce site, launching in 1997.…

Walmart said yesterday that it's raising its age restriction to 21 for firearm and ammunition purchases. In  a statement published on its website yesterday, the retailer said it made the decision in light of recent events and will try to implement this change "as quickly as possible." Walmart also pointed out that in 2015 it ended sales of certain sporting rifles…

Lowe’s last week launched its Track to the Trades program, a workforce development initiative designed to provide support for employees who want to pursue job training for skilled trades. Lowe's has partnered with adult education program Guild Education on the Track to the Trades program. The initiative comes at a time when the skilled trade…

We will be featuring Women in Retail Leadership Circle members, advisory board members and ladies who lead in Inner Circle Q&As over the next several months. The interviews will highlight what makes our community so special, from their leadership styles to their favorite vacation spots and everything in between. This week’s Q&A is with Courtney Graybill, vice president of customer experience and product management at David’s Bridal.

We will be featuring Women in Retail Leadership Circle members, advisory board members and ladies who lead in Inner Circle Q&As over the next several months. The interviews will highlight what makes our community so special, from their leadership styles to their favorite vacation spots and everything in between. This week’s Q&A is with Christena Reinhard, president and founder of Union & Fifth.

Lululemon Athletica Inc. announced Monday that Laurent Potdevin has resigned as CEO effective immediately, saying he fell short of the company’s standards of conduct. The Vancouver-based maker of yoga pants and other athletic-inspired clothing didn’t offer specifics but said it expects all employees to “exemplify the highest level of integrity and respect for one another.” A…

In episode 129 of Total Retail Talks, Bernie Yoo, co-founder and CEO of Bombfell, an online personal styling service, discusses the company's recent partnership with J.C. Penney to provide styling services for big-and-tall customers. In addition to discussing working with J.C. Penney, Yoo talks about Bombfell's new loyalty program, Keep More, Get More, as well…