Research Topic

Denver -- Thirty-one percent of survey respondents said they won't be shopping for any back-to-school products at all, up from 27.7% last year, according to research published by The Integer Group. The results were in the latest issue of “The Checkout, an ongoing shopper behavior study conducted by Integer and M/A/R/C Research.

With fewer people shopping, certain channels will see a drop in traffic. Integer predicts that mass, clothing, and drug will take the largest hit, losing 2.3%, 3.2%, and 5.5% of shoppers this year compared to last.

Total U.S. Shopper Traffic in Retail Stores and Malls for July 2013

Shopper activity increased last month, as ShopperTrak anticipated. Retail foot traffic increased 5.2% in July compared to June 2013. This is in line with recently reported positive month-over-month retail trends. However, foot traffic for July 2013 dropped compared to the same month in 2012 — with a decrease of 2.3%.

Reston, Va. -- Desktop-based e-commerce sales totaled $49.8 billion in the U.S. during the second quarter of this year. According to a new report from comScore, this represents an almost 16% increase from about $43.1 billion in the second quarter of the previous year.

This also marks the 15th consecutive quarter of positive year-over-year growth and 11th consecutive quarter of double-digit growth. Mobile commerce spending rose by $4.7 billion, or 24%, during the quarter. Other highlights of comScore’s data include:

CITY OF COMMERCE, Calif. — 99 Cents Only expects to increase its store count by approximately 10% exclusively in existing markets in fiscal 2014, following the company's first quarter results for the period ended June 29.

Newell Rubbermaid has announced plans to sell its hardware business to Nova Capital, a firm that specializes in the acquisition of corporate and private equity portfolios, for $214 million.

Specifically, components of the sale include Newell's Amerock, Ashland, Drapery Hardware, Bulldog and Shur-Line brands. Sales for 2013 came in at $255 million so far, with gross proceeds resting at $214 million.

San Francisco - Customer satisfaction is on the rise globally after more than a year in decline, with the average global customer satisfaction rating reaching 81% in the second quarter of this year. According to the new quarterly Zendesk Benchmark report, this about a 4% increase from an average rating of 78% in the previous quarter and the highest average rating since the first quarter of last year.

CHICAGO — The Quaker Oats Center of Excellence has established a scientific advisory board and an online hub for resources and oat research. Developed in 2012 by the Quaker Oats Company, the Quaker Oats Center of Excellence explores the relevance and benefits of oats through science, agricultural sustainability and innovation.

Newly appointed advisory board members were selected due to their extensive experience within their fields and will be called upon to share knowledge, information and insights based on their areas of expertise:

Fort Worth, Texas — Buxton has announced the roll out of a full suite of retail market analyses in the Canadian marketplace. The company noted that the Canadian retail market has become extremely competitive and will likely see massive retail growth over the next few years. As a new concentration for Buxton, the effort will focus on both U.S. retailers expanding into Canada, and Canadian organizations looking to maximize their footprint in the market.