Research Topic

No one would dispute that Lakeland, Fla.-based supermarket is a wonderful operator, but a piece in the August 12 issue of Forbes takes things a little too far and characterizes the regional operator of 1,073 stores as, “the Wal-Mart Slayer.”
 

Chicago — Pure-play e-tailers are doing a better job in satisfying their customers overall than omnichannel retailers, but omnichannel retailers have an edge in select functional areas like checkout. According to results of the mid-year Customer Feedback Index (CFI) from OpinionLab, e-tailers had an average CFI score of 481, compared with a CFI average of 457 for omnichannel retailers.

The state of gender equality among senior executive and in boardrooms is abysmal and “leaning in” isn’t enough to fix it, HSN CEO Mindy Grossman told a group of 300 retail and CPG executives recently.

Grossman was a featured speaker at the annual Network of Executive Women (NEW) Executive Leaders Forum in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif., last week. According to Grossman, woman “can lean in for the next 30 years and it will not be enough unless we hold boards and CEOs accountable."

Walmart knows it isn’t going to win any supermarket industry prizes for store experience, not when operators such as Whole Foods and Publix are involved, but not leading the pack on price is a different matter.

Canton, Mass. — Dunkin’ Brands Group, parent of Dunkin’ Donuts, beat Wall Street expectations by more than doubling its second-quarter profit. The company reported a profit of $40.8 million for the period ended June 29, up from $18.5 million a year ago. The year-earlier period included a $20.7 million increase in a litigation reserve.

Revenue increased 5.9% to $182.5 million from $172.4 million. U.S. same-store sales rose 4% at Dunkin' Donuts shops and improved 1.6% at Baskin-Robbins shops.

Last week it was veteran retail analyst Walter Loeb bemoaning what he viewed as Walmart’s deteriorating store standards. This week Ad Age took aim at the company’s brand image.
 
In a piece by Simon Dumenco, he recounts how early shopping experiences at Walmart stores were an eagerly anticipated experienced. However, like Loeb Dumenco took a shot at the store experience and then when a step further.

LOS ANGELES — With the back-to-school season well underway, a new spending forecast from e-commerce platform provider PriceGrabber conflicts with other recent studies and highlights the danger of placing much credence in what shoppers say about their spending intentions.

WTI expects that retail August 2013 will be the coolest in four years for the nation as a whole. Temperatures will trend cooler than last year in parts of the Northeast and in the western half of the nation, while temperatures will trend warmer in the Southeast and Ohio Valley. The Plains states and Rocky Mountains will see increased precipitation this year, while the Southwest and Southeast will trend drier than last year. August is expected to be another active month for tropical systems, especially during the latter part of the month.