Same-stores sales increased 3.2% in May, edging up from a 3% gain in April, according to a preliminary tally of 12 retailers by the International Council of Shopping Centers.

Some of the largest retailers in the United States and United Kingdom are not keeping pace at adapting their store operations to changing consumer buying habits.

The national vacancy rate for shopping centers dropped slightly from 10.09% to 10.06% in the first quarter of 2013, according to a study by global real estate services company Colliers International.

Checkout remains the number one in-store pain point for 73% of U.S. consumers, according to a survey by Synqera, a global technology startup that uses big data to bring personalized digital experiences to the physical retail store.

When The Mall at Bay Plaza opens to the public in 2014, adjacent to the highly successful outdoor Bay Plaza Shopping Center, it will be heralded as the first enclosed fashion mall in the New York City area in nearly 40 years.

By Brian Gillespie, Continuum

Retailers that deliver on their customers’ expectations and provide them with a seamless shopping experience – whether they are shopping in a store, online or through a mobile device – will win their loyalty and gain a competitive advantage that drives sales, according to new research by Accenture.

Imagine a store with a back staff of robots, where items appear, almost magically, in the fitting room. A store where customers pay for their purchases in their dressing rooms, without interacting with a single salesperson. You can stop imagining … check out Hointer, an apparel (mostly men’s jeans) shop in Seattle.