Marketing Tactics

Although comparable-store sales at Fred’s declined slightly in May, the company said sales strengthened in the last week of the month thanks to the first ad in its new marketing and branding program, designed to increase traffic and heighten customer awareness of category diversity.

The company’s total sales for the month stayed flat at $151.9 million, compared with $152.3 million in May last year. Comparable-store sales for the month declined 0.4% compared with a 0.5% decrease in the same period last year.

New York -- Home furnishings retailer West Elm has launched a wedding and gift registry that allows shoppers to register in stores, online or via smartphone app.

“Our customers have great individual style and definitely know how to party,” said Vanessa Holden, creative director of West Elm. “Our new wedding and gift registry features tips and tricks from some of our favorite partners, and it's the perfect tool to help couples design a home to suit their new life together or plan for any type of celebration.”

RadioShack has launched RadioShack Labs to support inventors and startups and boost new product innovation, offering a roadmap that takes them from concept to production to distribution.

The company teamed up with PCH, a respected leader in product innovation, to launch the labs. As part of the relationship, RadioShack intends to offer select PCH Access companies special retail terms, and create a direct path to up to 2,000 RadioShack stores and preferred positioning on radioshack.com.

Camp Hill, Pa. -- Rite Aid’s same-store sales rose 3.5% in May, boosted by a healthy increase in Rx sales.

The chain’s front-end same store sales increased 0.5%. Pharmacy same-store sales increased 5.0%. Total drugstore sales for the five-week period increased 2.5% to $2.48 billion, compared with $2.42 billion for the same period last year.

Prescription sales accounted for 68.0% of drug store sales, and third party prescription sales represented 97.4% of pharmacy sales.

Jelly Belly Candy Co. is prepping for Halloween 2014 with a mix of sinister and sweet  thanks to the company's new Disney Vile Villains themed bags.

Four Disney villains — Ursula, Captain Hook, the Evil Queen and Maleficent — will adorn the bags. Each bag is filled with a "Vile Villains" mix, which consists of Jewel Very Cherry, Jewel Sour Apple, Jewel Orange, Jewel Blueberry and new Jewel Grape Soda.

From the 156-year-old Macy’s to the online startup Zady, Fast Company’s annual ranking of “The World’s Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in Retail” shows how diverse the retail landscape had become — and the changing nature of retail innovation.

Here’s a quick recap (I’ve added some comments following Fast Company’s qualifiers):

1. WARBY PARKER: For being the Warby Parker of Warby Parkers.

Fort Worth, Texas -- RadioShack is partnering with hardware manufacturer and accelerator PCH International to create RadioShack Labs, a collaboration to help inventors and start-ups bring their products direct to the market — and hopefully boost store traffic. As part of the agreement, the retailer will open dedicated areas in RadioShack stores that feature new and innovative products from startups. The shops will utilize a direct-to-store model for select products, reducing inventory requirements and increasing inventory turn in the stores.  

By Eric Larson, Chief Revenue Officer, HelloWorld

The retail industry has experienced a massive shift in recent years, with mobile and social technology bringing both change and opportunity in how consumers research, browse and buy. With today’s new level of price transparency, and the competition always just a tap away, retailers are feeling the pressure.