Marketing Tactics

Sears is offering early access to Black Friday deals as a means to entice customers to join its free Shop Your Way membership-based loyalty program.

The retailer said its Shop Your Way members can begin Black Friday a week early at Sears.com when exclusive pricing on key items becomes available at 6 p.m. on Nov. 20. Then on Thanksgiving Day, Sears stores will open at 6 p.m. with more than 1,000 doorbuster deals continuing through 1 p.m. on Black Friday.

Walmart EVP of merchandise operations Scott Huff is scheduled to address members of the Bentonville Bella Vista Chamber of Commerce at an upcoming event.

The Grommet is partnering with a store in Boston to launch a “pop-in” shop on Nov. 20 as part of an effort to bridge the gap between e-commerce and brick-and-mortar stores.

With so many consumers on the hunt for unique holiday gifts, the Grommet said it wants shoppers to be able to touch, test and purchase the company’s offerings. The “pop-in” Grommet shop will be located within Boston boutique Michelle Willey and be open from Nov. 20 through the end of December.

Washington, D.C. –- A large number of holiday shoppers are taking their time when it comes to starting the task of making holiday purchases. According to NRF’s Holiday Consumer Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics, 45.6% of holiday shoppers say they haven’t started shopping yet.  

Chicago -– The perception of men as not enjoying the process of grocery shopping may have some truth to it. More men are grocery shopping for themselves or their families now than in the past, but they’re not happy about it, reports The NPD Group.  

Cincinnati –- Half of all consumers dislike the idea of all-day Thanksgiving store shopping hours, although younger consumers are more open to it.   According to a survey of 1,001 U.S. consumers by loyalty services provider Loyalty One, 50% say all-day shopping hours on Thanksgiving Day are a bad idea that detracts from the traditional celebration.  

New York -- Crocs Inc. has named McKinney as its global advertising agency of record. The agency will provide everything from creative and strategy support to media activation and brand management for all Crocs shoe collections.  

Chicago -- The growing importance of the multichannel shopping experience is highlighted in a new study by A.T. Kearney. The report, "Connected Consumers Are Not Created Equal: A Global Perspective," is focused on better understanding today's connected consumers.  

New York -- Online beauty retailer Birchbox is launching in Canada, marking the sixth country the company has expanded to since launching in the United States in Sept. 2010.      Since our launch in 2010, we’ve had tens of thousands of customer inquiries regarding shipping to Canada,” says Birchbox co-Founder and co-CEO Katia Beauchamp. “So we’re thrilled to finally bring Birchbox north of the border.”  

Luis Orbegoso, ADT Business   A recent survey by the National Retail Federation found that 20 to 40 % of small and mid-sized retailers’ annual sales occur within the last two months of the year. So what does this mean for small- and medium-sized business owners? It can mean hordes of customers coming through the door, inventory flying off the shelves, and the overwhelming need to be more prepared than any other time of year.