Omnichannel

Neiman Marcus Group is planning invest in a $100 million project intended to increase its outreach and drive sales across retail channels including brick-and-mortar stores, mobile and online, the company said last week. According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the project will be a multiyear initiative to develop a merchandising platform across all brands and channels. The development of the platform is expected to begin during fiscal 2014 and targeted for implementation in fiscal 2016.

This past week, Uri Minkoff, co-founder of fashion apparel retailer Rebecca Minkoff, sat down with Refinery 29 Co-Founder and CEO Phillppe von Borries for a fireside chat at Fashion Digital NY. During the candid conversation, Minkoff shared what "growth hacking" is, how the brand connects with its millennial audience and what it's like working with his sibling.

New York – Halston is launching its digital flagship store in more than 80 countries today, including the U.S., and Canada. The vertical e-commerce site will feature Halston Heritage apparel and...

Amazon.com unveiled a new section within its giant catalog on Thursday, a Luxury Beauty Store. There, shoppers can find products from 24 prestige brands, including Nars, Burberry and nail polish queen Deborah Lippman. The store carries luxury brands, but it doesn't look like luxury. It looks exactly like the rest of Amazon's product catalog, although thumbnail images are larger. Editorial content from Amazon's beauty editors and others from the brands themselves sweeten the deal.

Fossil hopes to beef up its in-store technology within the next two years, offering customers a number of ways to access, browse and purchase products. "It's really important for our target customers," said Andrew Hess, Fossil's vice president of IT, adding that the brand's target customers are typically well-connected shoppers in their 20s or early 30s. "We're trying to meet some of their expectations."

The holidays offer retailers a wealth of opportunities to cash in on strong online sales, but with consumers now conditioned to expect an even better holiday shopping experience year after year, their expectations will be running at an all-time high this season. Today's shoppers demand a buying experience that's highly engaging across all channels, be it in-store, online or on their mobile devices. Anything short of that could cost retailers critical holiday sales in an ultracompetitive environment.

Beauty retailer Sephora has launched Sephora University Beauty Classes, a new program designed to help beauty lovers of all ages and abilities master everything from building a skin care routine to creating the perfect smoky eye. Now available in more than 60 stores throughout the United States, these complimentary classes are the newest way in which Sephora is striving to further enhance the client experience.

Last Thursday, Diane von Furstenberg's studio in New York's Meatpacking district underwent a temporary transformation. Gone were the large pieces of furniture on the east-facing wall; in their place were cameras, studio lights and a half dozen production people, in addition to representatives from Google, the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), public relations firm KCD as well as von Furstenberg's own design company. The occasion? Von Furstenberg was hosting the first shoppable Google+ Hangout, one in a series to be held by CFDA designers.

There's a sense of alternate reality built in to each of URBN Inc.'s (owner of Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, BDLHN and Terrain) stores. Now URBN is taking this experience to the next level by building a branded village where ladies (and men) can live its ethereal lifestyle and buy it, too. Our sister site Racked Philly reports that the company purchased 6.5 acres in Devon, Pa. (about 30 minutes outside the heart of Philadelphia as the Google Maps flies) onto which they plan to erect a Terrain garden center, an Anthropologie, a boutique hotel, a couple farm-to-table restaurants, and more.

Sherwin-Williams is releasing a new consumer app for Google Glass, called ColorSnap Glass. Developed for Sherwin-Williams by digital marketing agency Resource, ColorSnapp Glass provides a digital layer of color samples customers can view using the Google Glass device. "We're committed to harnessing the latest in technology in order to create superior experiences for our customers," said Ellen Moreau, VP of