Marketing Tactics

In keeping with its fast-paced growth, Petco is starting the new year by celebrating the grand re-opening of 14 remodeled stores in Los Angeles.    Last year, Petco expanded its retail presence nationwide by opening 71 new stores and one new Unleashed by Petco store, remodeling 41 stores and expanding five stores.     Fourteen Petco stores will celebrate grand re-openings on Jan. 13-15.  

Charitable giving exceeded $971 million, partially fueled by the convenience of mobile commerce.    That’s according to data aggregated in PayPal’s interactive tracker, the company’s online “giving” platform. In addition to contributions made during the holidays, PayPal reported it processed $7.3 billion in contributions in 2016 — an 11% increase in charitable giving for the year.  

The National Retail Federation is donating $1 (up to $10,000) to RetilROI for every unique session review on the NRF mobile app at the association’s annual “Big Show” in New York City.    RetailROI (the Retail Orphan Initiative) is a charity started by the retail community to help orphans and vulnerable children worldwide through clean water, education and computer learning projects.  

Despite disappointing results from some retailers, overall holiday sales are shaping up to be in line with industry projections.  

Party City Holdco Inc. continues to acquire its franchised locations.   The company has entered into an agreement to acquire a master franchise group representing 18 franchise stores in Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida, and with estimated 2016 sales of approximately $34 million. The purchase price is estimated to be $14.5 million to $15.0 million.  

Despite being criticized as being impersonal gift options, gift cards continue to rise in popularity.   In fact, gifts care are increasingly expected and eagerly used, especially among "older" millennial adults, according to “Prepaid and Gift Cards in the U.S., 5th Edition,” a report from market research firm Packaged Facts.  

Albertsons is helping expand online grocery purchases to low-income individuals nationwide.   The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has selected Albertsons Companies to participate in the online purchasing pilot for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) — a service targeting low-income households.   

Online spending, and the amount of purchases made after the standard shipping deadline, were on the rise this holiday season.  

Millennials grab most of the attention from brand marketers, but baby boomers still have greater disposable income and far more purchasing clout. 

GNC hit the reset button on December 28, 2016, closing its 4,464 U.S. owned and franchised stores for the day as it rolled out a simplified pricing strategy with items priced the same across all channels, a new app, a new rewards program and installed new POS terminals.    Field Agent, a consulting firm that conducts on-location auditing and research, recently sent “agents” to 52 stores to check out the changes. In some good news for struggling GNC, the reviews were mostly positive.