Marketing Tactics

New York -- Marimekko will open a flagship in the heart of Beverly Hills, Calif., on Nov. 15. The 5,000 -sq.-ft. store will feature the entire range of Marimekko products, from signature fashions to home furnishings and textiles, as well as a showroom to support further business development of the brand in the area.

The Finnish textile and clothing design company, renowned for its original prints and colors, opened a store in Palo in the Stanford Shopping Center, on Oct. 25.

Brand marketing veterans Chris Burggraeve and Ted McConnell are the newest members of the board of industry advisors at Syncapse, a leading social performance management company.

Burggraeve is the former chief marketing officer of Anheuser-Busch InBev and founder of Vicomte LLC. McConnell is a former director of marketing innovation at Procter & Gambler and EVP of digital at the Advertising Research Foundation.

Smartphones will be retailers’ friend this holiday season, according to Deloitte’s annual survey of spending intentions and trends.

Naperville, Ill. -- OfficeMax today announced it is extending support to the thousands of people still without electricity by providing free in-store charging stations, fax, scan and email services to help those affected by Hurricane Sandy stay connected and get back to business. The retailer also partnered with nonprofit AdoptAClassroom.org to launch the Hurricane Relief for Teachers (HuRT) program to help restore damaged classrooms along the east coast.

Dallas -- J.C. Penney announced it will celebrate Black Friday with its only sale of the year. The retailer said more than 1,100 J.C. Penney stores will open their doors at 6 a.m. on Black Friday to offer low prices on gifts for the entire family — with no coupons or rebates required. Associates throughout the store will be equipped with mobile checkout devices.

New York -- Target plans to open at 9 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day to kick of its Black Friday promotional efforts and will follow up with additional deals that become available at 4 a.m.

The company is also rewarding its REDcard holders by allowing them early access to select Black Friday sale items at Target.com.

New York – Gap is feeling the love this holiday season.