Marketing Tactics

Hesitating to offer back-to-school deals could result in significant loss of potential sales.  

Politics can make for some strange bedfellows.   Donald Trump’s campaign is reportedly using American Apparel to manufacture some of its campaign apparel merchandise, according to Fortune.  

J.C. Penney and Sears are turning up the heat on one another in the appliance category — and that translates into good news for consumers. Penney began rolling out expanded appliance departments to stores nationwide this past weekend, offering aggressive price cuts and other special deals, Fortune reported.

Hello Kitty Cafe is pretty darn cute — and popular.    Located at the Irvine Spectrum Center in Irvine, California, the pop-up café opened on July 15, and draw such crowds that it had to temporarily close for a few hours. It’s housed within a pink shipping container that has been refurbished to feature a counter and dining patio area, complete with bistro tables and pink-and-white striped awnings. Bold character graphics adorn the exterior and interior container panels.  

Parents making back-to-school purchases are willing to open their wallets, if the price is right.   That’s according to a new study from digital savings platform RetailMeNot Inc., "Back-to-School Cheat Sheet: Consumer Trends and Insights for Retailers," back-to-school shoppers plan to spend an average of $273 per child, up from their anticipated spending of $246 in 2015.  

The Hershey Company is moving its popular store in Manhattan’s Times Square to a much larger location.   The company will unveil a new Hershey’s Chocolate World flagship at 20 Times Square in late 2017. The new store will be three times larger than the existing Hershey’s store, which has been a major tourist attraction since it opened in 2002. It will also feature even more bells and whistles, including a state-of-the-art digital billboard.  

J.C. Penney and Sears are turning up the heat on one another in the appliance category — and that translates into good news for consumers.     Penney began rolling out expanded appliance departments to stores nationwide this past weekend, offering aggressive price cuts and other special deals, Fortune reported.   

Sonos, known for its “smart” sound systems, has made its bricks-and-mortar debut with an interactive store that celebrates music.     The store, in the SoHo section of Manhattan, is designed to allow visitors to listen to music — and experience Sonos products — the way they would at home. It also offers "Simple Set Up," a white-glove, in-home service that includes local delivery, set-up, and product introductions for in-store purchases.