Today on Total Retail

We've heard for some time now that traditional brick-and-mortar malls are facing a decline with the uptick in online shopping. However, some experts claim the “death of malls” has been widely exaggerated. According to Coresight Research’s The State of the American Mall report, more malls opened than closed in the last year, the first time…

Shipping, and whether or not it’s free, has been the de-facto decision maker for online shopping conversions ever since Amazon.com introduced its Prime membership in 2005. What started out as a way for non-Amazon retailers to remain competitive and to incentivize shoppers to buy more online has now become a very expensive customer expectation. In…

In a keynote presentation at the ICR Conference in Orlando, FL earlier this week, William White, senior vice president and chief marketing officer, Walmart U.S., detailed three key marketing strategies for the retailer in the new year. Each of the three initiatives support the marketing team's goal of making Walmart a place where people want…

Let’s face it: Traditional loyalty programs were designed for another age and now they’re necessarily evolving as brands recognize the need for innovative strategies to capture and keep consumers' hearts. The shift towards "surprise and delight tactics" on social media is becoming increasingly crucial in building solid customer relationships and fostering brand association — and…

The retail landscape has undergone tectonic shifts in recent years, leaving managers to navigate sometimes unfamiliar if not entirely new territory. From deploying emerging technologies to training staff on urgent theft prevention strategies, today's retail leaders wear many hats as they work to boost productivity, deliver consistent experiences, and protect the bottom line. With 2024…

The bar for the customer experience is continually being raised and 2024 is set to be no exception as the competition between retailers gets tougher. Organizations will need to ensure they keep up-to-date with the latest shopping trends to meet the demands of the omnichannel experience, particularly with technologies like artificial intelligence on the rise.…

In the past year, the retail industry has witnessed an unprecedented surge in mergers and acquisitions (M&A), exceeding $100 billion in total activity. As we begin 2024, it's forecasted that we will see an explosion in M&A activity. Retailers are strategically engaging in M&A for multiple reasons, from international expansion to increasing market share, expanding…

With consumer prices beginning to plateau, retailers are beginning to feel cautiously optimistic over their future revenue streams. However, the index remains up 3.2 percent from a year ago, and with federal student loans now due for the first time in over three years, this makes a recipe for wallet-conscious shoppers. Now, shoppers are cutting…

Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said in a keynote speech at CES earlier this week that the retail giant would expand its drone delivery footprint and launch an artificial intelligence-powered search tool for iOS users. McMillon said the drone delivery would be expanded to 1.8 million additional households in the Dallas-Fort Worth area later this year.…

Each year, NRF: Retail’s Big Show provides the retail industry with the latest insights on the development of the solutions and groundbreaking technologies available across the sector. With last year’s event focusing heavily on breakthroughs — the artificial intelligence boom helping retailers develop in-store customer experiences and better utilize data analytics and personalization capabilities —…