NRF

Washington, D.C. -- Import volume at major U.S. retail container ports is expected to increase 6.1% in April 2014, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Hackett Associates. U.S. ports followed by Global Port Tracker handled 1.26 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU) in February 2014, the latest month for which after-the-fact numbers are available.

Washington, D.C. – In a statement submitted to the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on April 8, the National Retail Federation (NRF) urged Congress to address what it sees as an increasing threat to retailers: patent trolls. Patent trolls are entities that purchase overly-broad patents with the sole intent of suing retailers and other end-users of technology that allegedly infringe on those patents.

The shift toward electronic payments has had the unintended consequence of hindering shoppers’ ability to donate to charitable causes at the point of sale, but not anymore.

Washington, D.C. -- The Association for Retail Technology Standards (ARTS), a division of the National Retail Federation, is releasing its Change4Charity Standard. If adopted by point-of-sale vendors and donation processors, the standard will lower costs for retailers and support greater participation in charity programs by smaller retailers and non-profits.

Washington, D.C. -- Retail employment increased 18,200 in March and 229,000 year-over-year, according to the National Retail Federation. The increase is consistent with recent positive economic indicator reports and bodes well for income and consumer confidence as the industry enters into the busy spring selling season.

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation (NRF) has urged Congress to pass the bipartisan Save American Workers Act, which would change the Affordable Care Act’s definition of full-time employment from 30 hours per week to 40 hours. NRF sent a letter to the House saying all votes related to the bill, H.R. 2575, would be considered key votes for the association’s annual scorecard.

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation (NRF) has publicly called Senate legislation aimed at increasing the federal minimum wage by 40% an anti-job tax that would lead to higher labor costs for employers and fewer opportunities for young and entry-level workers. NRF will include votes on the minimum wage as “Key Retail Votes” in its annual voting scorecard used to measure legislative support for the retail industry’s public policy priorities.

The Nordstrom’s Customer Experience Center is a replica of a store where the department store operator can bring together salespeople, suppliers and customers to share feedback on new concepts before they are introduced to stores.