Marketing Tactics

Macy's is set to open its new format, Backstage, this week in Queens, and the retailer gave the Associated Press a sneak peak of the new effort and what's in store.

Williams-Sonoma is spicing up its store format.

The retailer’s new store in Ponce City Market, Atlanta, features a direct opening to a dining venture by celebrity chef Jonathan Waxman. The adjacent restaurant,  due to open in the fall, is being outfitted by Williams-Sonoma.  A glass wall strategically placed between the restaurant and Williams-Sonoma will offer shoppers an exclusive view into the dining room, and also give them inspiration while they shop. The floor plan is the first in Williams-Sonoma’s history with an independent business.

An innovative company incubated in the fashion tech lab Macy’s helped launched has struck a deal that will expose its roster of designers to the department store retailers’ mass market audience.

The holiday season is rapidly approaching. For years, gift cards have remained the most requested gifts in America but with the billions of dollars worth of gift cards that will be sold this holiday season, not all will be used. That’s because gifters aren’t always spot on with their purchases and if the card isn’t a match for the consumer it may go unused, a lose-lose for all parties involved.

A new website –- part social network, part online marketplace -- is partnering with dozens of well-known retailers to reward shoppers who promote their products on social media.

Yuno, a new social shopping e-commerce site that allows users to discover and shop for over 70 million products, launched this week. Free to use, Yuno curates fashion, lifestyle, sports and technology products from major retailers, including Macy's, Best Buy, Nieman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue and Foot Locker, and rewards users with cashback on every purchase made.

Salads and fancy pizza will soon be on the menu at a very limited number of Target locations.

Some surprising differences are revealed in new research from Nielsen about which brands men and women trust the most.

Nielsen released a list of America’s Most Trusted Brands  that shows distinct trust difference between men and woman. The ist stemmed from a consumer packaged goods focused wave of the 27th annual Harris Poll EquiTrend study showcasing the top 10 most-trusted brands.

New York -- Macy’s is set to unveil its new store banner, the off-price Macy’s Backstage, in the Queens borough of New York City and Huntington, New York, on Sept. 2.

The store offers a no-frills shopping experience, according to the Associated Press, which was given a sneak peek at the new format.

Click here for the story.

West Sacramento, Calif. -- Raley’s Family of Fine Stores is entering the health and wellness space.

The privately owned supermarket company said it will debut a new, small-format store in the Sacramento, Calif., market in 2017 that focuses on health and wellness.

The 36,000-sq.-ft. store, being done in partnership with Stafford King Wiese Architects and Armstrong Development Properties, will be designed to be state-of-the art with a focus on the most sustainable features. The store is scheduled to begin construction in mid-2016.

Dallas – Consumers show a clear preference for one particular perk from retailer reward programs, and it isn’t cash back.

According to “The Road to Rewards,” a consumer behavior report from Excentus, more than 54% of U.S. consumers polled in July 2015 belong to loyalty programs that enable them to save on the cost of fuel.