Marketing Tactics

Macy’s plans to get a jump on Black Friday and break tradition by opening the doors to most of its locations nationwide at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving evening, making it the first time in its history that the retailer will be open for business on the holiday.

Limited-time specials in every department for hundreds of items include exclusive fragrances, name-brand apparel and kitchen gadgets. Macy's will also donate $2 to Make-a-Wish, up to $100,000, for any One Direction "Our Moment" fragrance purchase beginning at opening for Black Friday.

Amazon.com has unveiled its 2013 holiday toy list which features, for the first time, top toy picks voted on by Amazon Mom fans and an enhanced Holiday Gift Finder that allows shoppers to filter by age, gender, interests, brands and price points.

Johnson & Johnson saw its growth initiatives pay off in the third quarter and increased its earnings guidance for 2013.

The company had sales of $17.6 billion for the quarter, an increase of 3.1% as compared to the third quarter of 2012. Operational results increased 4.7% and the negative impact of currency was 1.6%. Domestic sales increased 1.7%. International sales increased 4.2%, reflecting operational growth of 7.1% and a negative currency impact of 2.9%.

Chicago -- Consumers value the retail store experience on multiple levels and continue to make the vast majority of their purchases in stores, according to a new study from global management consulting firm A.T. Kearney. The report found that the physical store is the channel of choice across all ages (from Millennial to senior citizens) and household income levels (from less than $25,000 per year to more than $100,000 per year).

Los Angeles -- Faced with an uncertain economic and political environment and the first government shutdown in nearly two decades, Americans are expected to tighten their holiday budgets this year, beginning with Halloween, according to market research firm IBISWorld. Total spending on the holiday is anticipated to grow only 3% to $7.63 billion in 2013, compared to a strong 17.8% increase in 2012.
 

SAP demonstrated a concept consumer app called “Snap” at its recent Retail Forum in Dallas. Snap provides customers with interactive 3-D assembly instructions for a vast array of products. The instructions are pulled from manufacturer CAD files and delivered via cloud after the customer scans a product barcode or QR code, with options such as zoom and audio. Snap even lets shoppers register products for warranties and automatically request replacement parts.

Columbus, Ohio -- DSW Inc. is opening of a new store in Greenville, S.C. on October 17. As of May 18, 2013, DSW operates 377 stores in 42 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, as well as 348 leased departments for other retailers in the U.S. under the Affiliated Business Group.

Woonsocket, R.I. – CVS is reportedly offering a new program to its ExtraCare loyalty program members, called myWeeklyAd, which creates a personalized profile with targeted product offers based on previous purchases. According to Wall St. Cheat Sheet, CVS spent about $7 million on the omnichannel program which is available on PC, tablet and smartphone.

Dallas and New Orleans — The Howard Hughes Corp. has announced the tenant lineup for the redevelopment of Riverwalk Marketplace in New Orleans. The $70 million renovation is transforming the aging mall into The Outlet Collection at Riverwalk, the nation’s first downtown outlet center.

According to Hughes Corp., virtually all of the space in the new Riverwalk has been committed, and well-known national outlet retailers and popular local retail, dining and entertainment offerings hold 94% of the leases.

The opening of two new Stein Mart stores in New Jersey and California this month will round out the discount department store operator's 2013 capital expansion program and give it a year-end total of 264 units.

The opening follows four new stores last month in El Paso, Texas; Buford, Ga.; Elk Grove, Calif.; and Colorado Springs, Co., as well as a September comparable-store sales increase of 5% and a total net sales increase of 7.3% for the month.