Retail Stores
July 27, 2021 at 7:11 pm
Merchandise facility managers are having a hard time catching a break this year, dealing with labor shortages and a dearth of shipping containers and air freight capacity. All of that has caused major inventory backlogs for brick-and-mortar retailers. These ripple effects, of course, stem from the pandemic, which temporarily shut down factories and other production…
July 19, 2021 at 7:04 pm
Consumers plan to spend record amounts for both school and college supplies as families and students plan to return to in-person classrooms this fall, according to the annual survey released today by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Prosper Insights & Analytics. Families with children in elementary through high school plan to spend an average…
July 15, 2021 at 5:38 pm
In this episode of Retail Right Now, Total Retail's Joe Keenan and Kristina Stidham discuss back-to-school spending and behavior. Key data from recent consumer surveys on trends and forecasts show that retailers should prepare for a busy back-to-school season this year. For example, KPMG reports that BTS spending is expected to increase 9 percent year-over-year,…
July 14, 2021 at 5:29 pm
Wholesale is so 2019. Enter 2021, a year of continued post-ish pandemic e-commerce growth, countless brands pulling back on wholesale partnerships to go direct to consumer (D-to-C), and the ultimate wholesale-marketing bridge: marketplaces. Retailers spent 2020 duct-taping together broken supply chains, reeling from wholesale partners slashing orders as stores shuttered across the country, and scrambling…
July 12, 2021 at 9:22 pm
In episode 306 of Total Retail Talks, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviews Emilie Hoyt, founder and CEO of LATHER, top quality products for the body, face, hair and home made from unique, natural ingredients and pure essential oils. Hoyt discusses LATHER's business, what led her to start the brand, and to what she attributes the company's 20-year…
July 8, 2021 at 7:31 pm
At its best, shopping is aspirational. Who doesn’t daydream about arriving home clutching bulging bags full of clothes, gadgets or other goodies from their favorite store? During the pandemic, we romanticized in-person shopping even as we placed online orders. Now that we’re all getting vaccinated, consumers are eager to get out for some real-world retail…
July 7, 2021 at 5:36 pm
Bloomingdale’s announced this week that it will use the oft-cited nickname Bloomie's for a new location, opening in Fairfax, Virginia, on Aug. 26. The word Bloomie’s has for decades been used as a term of endearment by fans of the original luxury department store chain. The roughly 22,000-square-foot space will be much smaller than a typical…
July 5, 2021 at 12:27 pm
In episode 305 of Total Retail Talks, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviews Jill Renslow, executive vice president of business development at Mall of America, the nation’s largest retail and entertainment complex. Renslow discusses her current role and 24-year career at the mall, the various entertainment and attractions that set Mall of America apart, and what the…
June 23, 2021 at 11:42 am
As state and federal governments lift mandatory safety measures following CDC guidance, businesses have begun cautiously reducing their protocols for the first time for both their employees and customers. National retailers like Trader Joe’s, Costco, Walmart, Target, and Starbucks have announced that vaccinated customers do not have to wear masks, and many have dropped the…
June 15, 2021 at 4:13 pm
When it comes to how cities serve their citizens, success is a long game. It takes years (and even decades) to shift a city to accommodate changes in how we live, and that’s precisely why city planners, businesses, and real estate agents alike are closely watching recent trends surrounding how and where we live, work…
