Retail Media

Menlo Park, Calif. – Facebook has purchased personalized shopping engine TheFind.com, with the intent of making its ad more relevant to individual users. The social media giant will integrate TheFind’s functionality into its personalized ad-matching capability, rather than keep TheFind operating as a separate entity.

In a message on its homepage, TheFind said some employees will make the transition to Facebook.

By Hyaat Chaudhary, CEO, Carbon Media Group

At a time when the traditional separation between online and brick-and-mortar retailers is blurring, brands need to be smarter to win on the digital front. The ability to establish a presence online — and to capitalize on digital marketing and promotions driven by social media and other online tools — is no longer a luxury: it is a necessity.

Livermore, Calif. -- Simon announced that its Bay Area outlet shopping center, Livermore Premium Outlets, will be rebranded and named San Francisco Premium Outlets in conjunction with a major expansion.

The 512,000-sq.-ft. center is located in the affluent East Bay area of northern California and features 130 designer and name brand outlet stores, including Armani, Barneys New York, Bloomingdale's Outlet, Burberry, Cole Haan, DKNY, Elie Tahari, Kate Spade New York, Last Call by Neiman Marcus, Polo Ralph Lauren, Prada and Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th.

New York -- The fast-growing Michael Kors has opened its largest and most comprehensive location to date, a three-story, 22,000-sq. ft. flagship in the Soho section of Manhattan. The store features the debut of the men’s collection in the brand’s own retail stores, with the first-ever in-store presentation of men’s shoes and and an entire floor dedicated to accessories, and the first dedicated Michael Kors shoe salon. Huge, floor-to-ceiling video screens, set on all three floors, help bring the products to life.

Making sense of promotional activity can be challenging given the abundance of new variables to consider which is why a recent change from Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing (ECRM) is much needed.

ECRM, a leader in business innovation and technology, enhanced its data and analytics website at www.ECRMdata.com with new functionality, increased retail coverage and ease of use.

Unilever is trying to grow sales of men’s skin care products by targeting fathers with innovative workshops at Sam’s Club.

Dove Men+Care and Family First's national nonprofit fatherhood program, All Pro Dad, will present All Pro Dad in-Club interactive workshops at 60 Sam's Clubs in the Top 30 markets across the country on Jan. 17.

Solid sales of televisions and mobile phones in stores and online drove better than expected top line growth at Best Buy during the holidays with details on profitability yet to come.

The company said same-store sales grew 3.4% in the United States over the holidays (Nov.-Dec.) as it sold more large-screen TVs and mobile phones.

Take a video tour of Starbucks's newest retail format, which will serve as launchpad for a 100-store premium coffee chain.