Merchandising

Lowe's Expands Partnership With Petco to 300 Stores
July 20, 2023 at 3:27 pm

Lowe's and Petco have announced the expansion of their pilot program that brings products, services and expertise — for both home and pets — into a one-stop shop, growing from 15 Lowe's stores to nearly 300 locations by year-end. Focusing on rural communities across the country, this expansion offers a new convenience to shoppers, providing access to…

Harnessing the Power of AI for Retail Merchandising
June 13, 2023 at 10:39 am

A retailer’s ability to create a seamless and relevant experience for their customers ultimately can be the difference between gaining loyalty or falling behind competitors. Today’s customers are looking for faster connections to the items they’re looking for and want personalization at every step along the way. This is why the pressure to nail online…

Nike to Re-Enter DSW Stores
June 12, 2023 at 5:21 pm

In a surprising reversal of its direct-to-consumer (DTC) focus, Nike will re-enter into a partnership to sell footwear at DSW stores. The footwear retailer’s parent company, Designer Brands Inc., announced the news last week in a call with analysts discussing first quarter earnings results. The deal will bring a variety of men’s, women’s and kids athletic footwear products to DSW and…

H&M Commits to 'Inclusion and Diversity by Design' With Extended Size Assortment
June 5, 2023 at 10:00 am

In episode 404 of Total Retail Talks, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviews Donna Dozier Gordon, head of inclusion and diversity for region Americas at H&M, a global fashion brand offering the latest styles and inspiration for all. During the wide-ranging interview, Dozier Gordon discusses her role at H&M (1:40), the retailer's expansion of its extended size assortment…

Target Pulls Some LGBTQ+ Products Following Customer Backlash
May 24, 2023 at 1:36 pm

Target is pulling some items from its Pride Collection off shelves following customer backlash, the company said Wednesday. Its LGBTQ+ products, launched at the beginning of May in acknowledgement of Pride Month in June, included more than 2,000 products, according to CNN. The items include clothing, accessories, mugs, shoes, books, pet accessories, and calendars. Target didn't…

Store Expansion, Private Labels Fuel Boot Barn's Sales Growth
May 17, 2023 at 4:28 pm

As part of its annual Fastest-Growing Retailers report, which ranks the top 50 U.S-based, publicly traded companies based on year-over-year (YoY) sales growth, Total Retail profiles the top retailers in the ranking. This year that included a profile of Boot Barn, which increased its YoY sales by nearly 67 percent in its 2022 fiscal year, good for…

Merchandising Planning Strategies for New Retail Stores
May 16, 2023 at 12:58 pm

Planning for a new store location? If so, choosing the right strategies is critical to success. Here are various options that merchandise planning teams can consider. Inventory Planning for Your First Store If your company is preparing to launch its very first store, it’s an exhilarating and exhausting time. It’s also the time when your…

PetSmart Chief Merchant Kristin Shane on Staying Agile, Customer Acquisition and More
April 6, 2023 at 6:08 pm

While at Shoptalk 2023 in Las Vegas last week, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan spoke with Kristin Shane, chief merchandising officer at PetSmart, to learn more about the pet brand's agile merchandising strategies. Shane shares how PetSmart's merchant teams stay agile, the skills needed to be an effective retail merchant today, and how proprietary brands factor into the pet retailer's…

How CPG Brands Can Foster Great Retail Partnerships in a Post-Pandemic Environment
April 6, 2023 at 5:42 pm

There’s no denying that more and more consumers are having products shipped to their homes. Yet the need for brick-and-mortar stores remains strong. And that makes it imperative for consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands to prioritize building and maintaining retail partnerships. Just how important is physical shopping? A March 2022 PowerReviews survey showed that 95…