Marketing Tactics

The Macy’s Bloomingdale division is pursuing a micro-seasonality promotion opportunity with an Asian-inspired marketing campaign.

The company announced that it will be ringing in the Year of the Ram this Chinese New Year with unique merchandise, special events and cultural presentations from Jan.22 – March 2.

Target already has famous TV chef GIada De Laurentis selling her products on its shelves, but the retailer is teaming up with another celebrity foodie for a new product line.

The company said it is launching a Mario Batali coffee range. Caffé Italiano, a collection of Italian-style coffees, will sell at select Target stores nationwide and online at www.target.com. The coffee is a product of a unique collaboration between Batali and Todd Carmichael, founder and CEO of La Colombe, world-renowned specialty coffee roaster.

In recent years, the millennial generation surpassed baby boomers as the largest population of consumers in our country. This shift presents a number of opportunities for retailers to target and build loyalty with a new generation; however, the opportunity also comes with its challenges. One of the greatest of which, is identifying ways to keep brick and mortar locations relevant to a convenience-seeking and highly digital audience.

Footwear retailer sales could be in for a “Boost” this spring thanks to a pricy introduction from Adidas backed by some big name athletes and a bold marketing claim.

Adidas contends its new Ultra BOOST shoe is “the greatest running shoe ever,” and for $180 it better be. It goes on sale next month in time for the Spring running season.

Seattle -- Starbucks Corp.’s first-quarter profit surged 82% as new offerings and holiday gave a boost to store traffic. Net income increased to $983.1 million, from $540.7 million a year earlier.

Consolidated net revenues the quarter, ended Dec. 28, increased 13% to $4.8 billion. Global same-store sales increased 5%, with a 2% increase in traffic. Same-store sales in the company’s U.S.-dominated region rose 5%, with a 2% increase in traffic, better than analysts had expected.

Louisville, Colo. -- Nordstrom ranked as consumers’ favorite fashion retailer for the third consecutive year, followed by Kohl’s, T.J. Maxx, Macy’s and Dillard’s. That’s according to a study by Market Force Information, a provider of customer intelligence solutions.

Washington, D.C. – An estimated 184 million viewers will watch Super Bowl XLIX on Sunday, Feb. 1. According to NRF’s Super Bowl Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics, average viewer spending will reach a survey high of $77.88, up from $68.27 in 2013.

Total spending is expected to reach $14.3 billion. Young adults ages 18-24 plan on spending an average of $95.92; those ages 25-34 and 35-44, however, will spend slightly more at an average of $101.54 and $102.82, respectively.

New York – Mobile apps have a lot of potential uses, but in 2015 retailers will likely focus on consumer engagement. According to the 2015 E-commerce Industry Outlook report from performance marketing technology company Criteo, 42% of retail executives and ad agencies rank consumer engagement as the primary goal of mobile app strategies.

Other Criteo predictions, based on data insights from billions of online transactions, include:

New York – L’Oreal USA is venturing into e-commerce via a partnership with with StyleSeat, an online platform for beauty and wellness services. Consumers already use StyleSeat to research and book appointments with hair and nail professionals, and it now offers salon-only L’Oreal authentic products for sale, as well.

Each purchase on StyleSeat can be made through the individual stylist pages. Users can also receive personalized email recommendations from stylists about products to use in between trips to the salon.

A big game bonanza is in store for retailers, with television viewership and entertainment related spending expected to hit record levels, according to a National Retail Federation survey.

According to NRF, average viewer spending will reach a survey high of $77.88, up from $68.27 last year, with fans planning to splurge on everything from game day food and new televisions to athletic wear and decorations. Total spending is expected to reach $14.3 billion.