Events

New York - Macy's continues its aggressive social media push with the launch of online video ads on Facebook starting on Thanksgiving evening. The ads are part of the retailer’s Black Friday weekend campaign.   The ads will feature cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants, who will also appear in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. They will target women age 21 and over.   

When Macy's kicks off the holiday shopping season with its traditional parade on Thanksgiving Day, the retailer will also be deploying social media to complement its holiday push.

The company earlier this year was one of the first retailers to launch Facebook video ads. On Thursday evening, Macy’s will roll out its next round of video ads, this time to coincide with its Black Friday weekend campaign.

Manchester, N.H. - Velcro Industries plans to open a retail pop-up store in the SoHo area of Manhattan. Styled as the "Holiday HackShop," the Velcro-branded pop-up store will be open Dec. 1 – 19.

New York - Forty-one percent of consumers plan to head to the stores on Black Friday,18% plan to shop in a physical store on Thanksgiving, and 32% of consumers will hit the stores on the following Saturday and/or Sunday, according to new data from the International Council of Shopping Centers. More than one-third (36%) of consumers plan to go to a physical store on Cyber Monday.

Younger shoppers make up the demographic group most likely to visit physical stores Thanksgiving weekend, but retailers had better be ready to offer the digital natives an ominchannel experience, according to new research from a leading retail trade group.  

DALLAS - The Container Store has long been lauded as one of the places to work—and now it looks like it’s also a great place to get married. The chain on Saturday celebrated the wedding of two 25+ year tenured employees—Greg Arechar and Lety Covarrubias—from its distribution Center,  at its headquarters. Co-founder and chairman emeritus Garrett Boone, an ordained officiant, led the ceremony.

NEW YORK - Macy’s is enhancing its Black Friday promotions by giving away  a million dollars in prizes in stores nationwide during doorbuster hours. Beginning at 6 p.m. local time on Thanksgiving Day, customers will have a chance to win big, scoring digital gift codes that can be used instantly for Black Friday purchases.  

Washington, D.C. - The National Retail Federation  asking President Obama to step into continuing labor unrest at the nation’s West Coast ports. The NRF has issued a statement its president and CEO, Matthew Shay, following reports that the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and Pacific Maritime Association are taking a break from contract negotiations.