Technology

Wal-Mart Stores’ technology arm, @WalmartLabs, on Tuesday said it's acquired Silicon Valley software company PunchTab, with intentions of using the company’s technology to tailor offers to its Sam’s Club shoppers. PunchTab marks WalmartLabs’ 15th acquisition in the last four years.

Target plans to cut back on outsourcing and hire 1,000 information technology workers. The retailer will hire 500 software engineers and other IT workers in Minneapolis and 500 more in India. Chief Information Officer Mike McNamara told CIO Journal that the company's reliance on vendors "got to a stage where almost half the team is in third…

Retailers that want to up the ante on exceptional customer service and personalization for their shoppers need to get their thumbs ready. "Text to Buy" is the latest shopping model to capture the attention of the retail industry. Leading brands and retailers have already bolstered their mobile shopping experience with this brilliant yet simple solution, allowing shoppers to send a text of what they want and when they want it. An associate confirms the order, and it’s on its way. Voila! A simple, human way to connect.

3-D printers will be coming to your local Staples — or rather, available on Staples’ website. Small businesses and customers will now be able to upload designs for order. According to a press release issued by the office supply chain, customers who want to use its 3-D printing service must make an account, where they can…

The opening of innovation labs and technology centers has been a trend in the retail industry for a few years now. Leading brands such as Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Nordstrom, CVS and others have all opened digital innovation labs within the last few years — most of them in Silicon Valley to take advantage of the abundant tech talent in that area. Kohl’s is no exception, having opened its digital center in Milpitas, Calif., in April 2013. All of these retailers are trying to be at the forefront of digital technology so they can better engage today’s tech-savvy consumers. In that quest, Kohl’s is turning to an unlikely source to find inspiration: interns.

Amazon.com has laid off "dozens" of engineers who worked on its failed Fire phone as part of a broader curtailment of its hardware development center, Lab126, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. The company is also said to be stopping or slowing projects, including a 14-inch tablet codenamed Project Cairo, a projector…

We’ve been hearing about the "Store of the Future" for some time now. Retail executives have spent the past 18 months experimenting with digital store technologies such as contextual digital displays, in-store sensors, beacons and analytics. These early pilot projects have yielded some successes, increasing customer convenience and unlocking new value as shoppers opt to…

As online giant Amazon.com charges into the $300 billion U.S. apparel market, Macy’s is running for the dressing room. Even Macy’s acknowledges there’s little it can do to keep customers from shopping online for basic clothing — T-shirts, men’s jeans and tighty whities. Yet the department store chain is clinging to the idea that many…

If Amazon.com is so automated, how come it continues to hire big numbers of people every time it opens a new fulfillment center? Just what is Amazon’s separation of labor between man and machine? To find out, we went inside Amazon’s Coppell, Texas facility with Amazon Spokeswoman Ashley Robinson on Wednesday.

Buying glasses online, whether prescription lenses or fashionable sunglasses, isn't the easiest of tasks. From finding a pair that are just the right size and color to getting the exact prescription lenses you need to seeing how the glasses will look on your face, the challenges are many. Glasses.com is trying to change that with…