Research Topic

WASHINGTON — The air is getting colder and retailers are already gearing up for the Christmas season, but before they do that, they will have to get through Halloween.

Los Angeles -- CBRE Group on Tuesday announced the launch of the Real Green Research Challenge, a four-year, $1 million commitment to fund leading-edge sustainability research and innovation relating to commercial real estate.

CBRE said it is accepting submissions for research proposals, with the goal of developing solutions to the industry’s critical environmental challenges.

New York -- A holiday preview report released Tuesday by the International Council of Shopping Centers said that sales are forecasted to rise 3% during the traditional November-December 2012 holiday period.

Additionally, ICSC said it anticipates that the other two measures of U.S. industry holiday sales – shopping-center sales and GAFO-store sales – will increase slightly as well.  

ARLINGTON, Va. — Consumers are growing more confident in technology and plan on spending more in this area, according to the latest CEA Index released today by the Consumer Electronics Association. The CEA Index also showed that consumer confidence in the overall economy improved this month.

Washington, D.C. -- Survey results released Tuesday by the National Retail Federation found that 71.5% of Americans will celebrate Halloween this year, up from 68.6% last year and the most in NRF’s 10-year survey history.

The consumer spending survey conducted by BIGinsight also found the average person will spend $79.82 on decorations, costumes and candy, up from $72.31 last year, with total Halloween spending expected to reach $8.0 billion.
 

New York -- The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had declined in August, improved in September to 70.3 -- up from 61.3 in August.

The Expectations Index increased to 83.7 from 71.1. The Present Situation Index rose to 50.2 from 46.5 last month.
 

New York -- As women age, they find the shopping experience less enjoyable, according to a survey by global design consultancy Fitch. The study finds that the most fulfilled female shopper is between 16 and 24 years of age, suggesting that shops are designed for the young.

“There is a big opportunity for retailers to redress the balance and improve all our shopping experiences — which is better for business and better for shoppers,” said Tim Greenhalgh, chief creative officer office, Fitch.