Displays & Signs

Minneapolis -- Supervalu president and CEO Craig Herkert on Tuesday spoke of the company’s “hyper-local retailing” concept during a conference call with analysts and reported by Retailing Today.

Supervalu’s commitment to growing its Save-A-Lot discount banner and its participation in First Lady Michelle Obama’s Partnership for a Healthier America campaign were other significant programs Herkert believes will help differentiate the grocer enough to drive trips and increase consumer loyalty.

Seattle -- AccessVia announced Tuesday that Casual Male DXL is printing color shelf-edge product signs using AccessVia Web dSignShop.

Signs are printed in the store on an as-needed basis, allowing the retailer to produce full-color sign designs immediately on-site.

Target shoppers at a store in Van Nuys, Calif. were surprised, and briefly inconvenienced, when a flash mob assembled by season nine American Idol contestant Todrick Hall took over the front end of the store and blocked access to check-out stands.

Chicago-based General Growth Properties is kicking off back-to-school shopping with two promotional programs – Shop til You Rock and Family Recess.

Shop Til You Rock, a music-inspired mall tour that empowers teens to look and feel like rock stars, is back for its second year. Teens are invited to watch live performances by some of today’s hottest bands, participate in exclusive activities and take advantage of special mall offers, prizes and sweepstakes, including a chance to win valuable shopping sprees and a gaming system.

Here’s a good idea for retailers looking to bring a sense of newness and a treasure hunt atmosphere to stores. Sign exclusive agreements with known and emerging designers or upscale brands during limited duration merchandising events as a means to achieve differentiation. Sound familiar?

Target pursued this concept more than a decade ago with general merchandise and earlier this year observed the 5th anniversary of the Go International designer program with a collection of products from past designers.

New York City -- McDonald’s Corp. plans to build the largest restaurant in its system as part of its role as official restaurant of the 2012 Olympic Games in London. The chain has been an Olympics sponsor since 1976.

Speaking in a global webcast on July 20, McDonald's UK CEO Jill McDonald said the planned restaurant will span 32,290 sq.-ft. over two levels, and will have a kitchen four times standard size to accommodate the crowds. The chain says it expects to serve 1.75 million meals during the games, which run from July 27 to Aug. 12, 2012.

NEW YORK — Gilt Groupe, an online retailer that specializes in selling sought-after brands at discounted prices to its 3.5 million members, has partnered with Banana Republic to offer its members exclusive access to select pieces from the retailer's upcoming "Mad Men" collection.

New York City -- Athletic apparel, footwear and accessories marketer Under Armour has opened its first European outlet store, in Madrid, Spain.