Retail Stores

Over the past few decades, we’ve seen a lot of physical retail businesses transition to become online businesses (or physical-online hybrids). This makes sense. Online juggernauts like Amazon.com have changed the way people buy things, and physical retail stores have had difficulty keeping pace. Transitioning to at least a partially online model is a kind…

U.S. retail sales unexpectedly rose in October as an increase in purchases of motor vehicles and a range of other goods offset a decline in demand for building materials, suggesting consumer spending remained fairly strong early in the fourth quarter. The Commerce Department said on Wednesday retail sales increased 0.2 percent last month. Data for…

The most recent high-profile victim of the retail apocalypse is Toys“R”Us, which has filed for bankruptcy. Toys“R”Us is another stark warning to legacy retailers to adapt to the changing landscape in which e-commerce and experiential retail have the power to make or break a retail business. Toys“R”Us’ decline is rooted in its continued reliance on…

It’s November and most retailers have been planning for the holiday season for several months. As brick-and-mortar establishments continue to evolve to compete with online competitors, it’s critical that retailers focus on those consumers who still plan to do their holiday shopping in-store, and how they can provide them with an enjoyable experience that meets…

While Target is doubling down on brick-and-mortar retail, the Minneapolis-based retailer also has decided to pull the plug on a dozen underperforming stores. The company on Monday began notifying store employees at the 12 affected stores, which are slated to close on Feb. 3. While competitors such as Macy’s, J.C. Penney and Sears have been closing many…

The world of retail was rocked last month when Toys"R"Us filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Many took it as a bad omen or the proverbial “last gasp” of a dying industry. Headlines of a “Retail Crisis” permeated the news cycle and analysts poured over the reasons why — with most of the blame directed…

Sears Holdings Corp. announced late last week that it will be closing an additional 63 stores early in 2018. The parent company of Sears and Kmart has already closed more than 350 stores this year. An additional 45 Kmart stores and 18 Sears stores will be closing in late January 2018, the company said. The 63…

Amazon.com has quietly started lowering prices by as much as 9 percent in recent weeks on certain products offered by third-party sellers, according to a Wall Street Journal report published on Sunday. Until now, Amazon has controlled prices only on the merchandise it sells directly to consumers. Now, according to the report, it's discounting the items…

J.C. Penney announced last week that it has eliminated the position of chief merchant. The move was made to streamline decision making and promote greater agility within its merchandise buying teams. John Tighe, current chief merchant, will be leaving the company to pursue other opportunities and will not be replaced. All senior merchandising executives will…

With the threat of online shopping, brick-and-mortar retailers have been forced to embrace the importance of the experiential aspect of their stores to drive repeat foot traffic. It takes something really compelling for the average consumer to go to a physical store instead of ordering whatever they need from the comfort of their own home.…