Retail Stores

When Warby Parker opened a flagship in New York City, many people were shocked. No one expected the digital eyewear disruptor to expand its business to a brick-and-mortar store. Speaking at Internet Week this week, Neil Blumenthal, one of Warby Parker's founders, said the move was strategic. "We believe the future of retail is at the intersection of e-commerce and bricks-and-mortar," he said. "People think it's crazy that we went and signed a 10-year lease in SoHo, next to Ralph Lauren, across the street from the Apple Store. But we have actually

David Strasser, an analyst at Janney Montgomery Scott, looks at Best Buy's strategy of a store-within-a-store for individual companies and products and how it's changing the landscape of its retail stores. Strasser speaks on Bloomberg Television's "Bloomberg Surveillance."

Anyone who has recently shopped or browsed on a tablet or smartphone knows that the retail experience is changing — and it's changing for both consumers and retailers. Within a few years, the entire shopping experience is likely to be all about the consumer, from start to finish. Buying and returning merchandise will be different — more consumer focused, more technology enabled and just plain easier.

After dropping in March, retail sales unexpectedly eked out a 0.1 percent gain in April, pointing to underlying strength in the economy and leading forecasters to raise estimates of second-quarter growth. The gain in retail sales, which account for about 30 percent of consumer spending, was the latest sign of resilience in an economy that has been hit by belt-tightening in Washington as the government tries to cut the budget deficit.

Is there such a thing as having a launch go too well? That was nearly the case with Warby Parker when the über-trendy eyewear company began its try-at-home program. "We launched with these features in GQ and Vogue, and within 48 hours we were stocked out of all our home try-on inventory," co-founder Dave Gilboa tells TechCrunch. "We had a wait list of 20,000 customers for home try-ons. We kind of freaked out and didn't know what to do." 

comScore released its estimates of the 2013 U.S. retail e-commerce sales for the first quarter. Sales grew 13 percent year-over-year to $50.2 billion, marking the 14th consecutive quarter of positive year-over-year growth and 10th consecutive quarter of double-digit growth. It was also just the second quarter on record to surpass $50 billion in spending.

Mothers day is coming up fast. May 12th 2013 is just around the corner and If you have not already done so, make sure you go out and get mom a special gift as soon as possible. If you need a hand picking something great, take a look at this mothers day gift guide by the HuffingtonPost Many this year like they have in previous years shopped online and bought mom that special gift from an online retailer, a simple, easy and fun process. But is it always?

Privacy advocates have an entirely new worry to keep them awake at night. National retailers like Nordstrom and Home Depot, working with a company called Euclid Analytics, have devised a method for tracking shoppers in their stores. The service identifies shoppers' smartphones by requests the devices make for Wi-Fi, even if they aren't connecting to the store's network.

Economists aren't the only ones watching improving home sales closely. Emboldened by recent numbers, retail giants J.C. Penney and Target are bolstering their home furnishing offerings in hopes that new buyers will need to decorate. The decision to invest in the home section could be a smart one if recent retail sales trends hold steady. In March, sales at e first quarter while appliance sales were about 0.7 percent higher.

Got a storefront? Then you've got a stage for your word of mouth topic. Give your "Open" sign some company and give people walking by something to talk about. Check out these examples of remarkable storefronts and try applying them to your own