Christmas in July? Not quite, but since a sizable portion of shoppers plan far ahead for the holidays, now is the time to begin engaging them. We’ve identified four main types of holiday shoppers, based on data from Google and Cardlytics around timing and mind-set — two of which are historically on the lookout for holiday shopping…
We’ll address how, through proper communication and training, Sephora was able to set its employees up for success while reopening.
The retail landscape looks completely different today compared to the beginning of 2020. COVID-19 has caused stores to shut down and employees to be furloughed. Retailers were already challenged before the pandemic began, and now many consumers are wary of returning to stores. Furthermore, social distancing regulations limit the number of people allowed in a…
J.C. Penney reached an agreement yesterday to sell its retail business to mall operators Simon Property Group and Brookfield Property Partners, averting a total liquidation. Simon and Brookfield will pay about $300 million in cash and assume $500 million in debt to buy J.C. Penney, lawyers for the retailer said at a Bankruptcy Court hearing. The deal…
Just the other day, I took my son to the hardware store to pick up supplies for a project. We were both wearing masks, naturally. You can’t get into the store without one. As we browsed, you couldn’t help but feel a sense of comfort at all the visual cues for social distancing. At checkout,…
Gap and Banana Republic are closing 225 stores this year and may close even more locations in 2021, CNN reported. In March, Gap Inc. announced it would be closing 90 stores, but this announcement means that number has more than doubled post COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the store closures will be in malls. Over the years,…
It’s no secret that COVID-19 has caused retailers to rethink and shift their now tighter marketing budgets. Weary of investing in digital advertising and marketing that cannot be clearly measured, retailers are moving away from big branding initiatives that don't yield direct results in favor of performance techniques that directly translate to sales. Beyond marketing…
In December, HBR took a look at what makes the “Best Companies to Work For” different from their competitors and uncovered a few common themes. The researchers found that these companies focus on their employees’ “life satisfaction,” not just job satisfaction. They provide ample opportunities for team members to build a highly matrixed career around…
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, brick-and-mortar retailers had learned how to compete with the disruption of e-commerce. Stores evolved in the face of a challenge that many believed would wipe out the industry entirely. Instead of folding, retail rose to the challenge. Today, those stores continue to welcome consumers through their doors, but the spaces customers…
On Wednesday, Target reported the greatest percentage increase in quarterly sales in the company’s history. Walmart, which reported earnings on Tuesday, doubled its e-commerce sales. Home Depot’s sales increased more than 23 percent in this year’s second quarter. Lowe's announced that its second quarter sales surged 30 percent, boosted by a 135 percent increase in e-commerce sales. Wayfair reported earlier that its revenue…
