Winter Holidays

Whole Foods has a tendency to zig when other retailers zag and it is doing just that with a new line PBS Kids branded toys this holiday season.

No bright shiny plastic toys will be found on Whole Foods shelves. Instead, the natural grocer struck a deal with PBS Kids to offer a line of educational and sustainable wooden toys and plush products for kids ages six months to three years. Each item in the PBS Kids line is made with safe, non-toxic materials and inks, and all packaging is made from recycled materials, according to the companies.

By Craig Johnson, Customer Growth Partners   With a third straight year of dismal retail spending, American consumers will generate only a lackluster 3.4% year-over-year increase in holiday sales, well below the 5% pace in 2010 and 2011, according to Customer Growth Partners’ 14th Annual Holiday Forecast.   

Burlington has partnered with K.I.D.S./Fashion Delivers and ABC’s Good Morning America for its eighth annual Warm Coat Warm Hearts coat drive, themed around “Families Helping Families.” 

The coat drive, which kicks off on Saturday, November 1, 2014, will benefit K.I.D.S./Fashion Delivers, a national non-profit organization dedicated to providing apparel and other products donated by manufacturers and retailers to community charities across the U.S. and throughout the world. 

San Mateo, Calif. –- Last year, Black Friday was the top date for “card present” (CP) fraud, where a payment card is presented in a store for unauthorized usage. Data science company Feedzai analyzed data representing $750 billion in payment volume and more than 17.5 billion transactions in both card present (CP) and card not present (unauthorized online card purchases, or CNP) environments.  

Retailers are in for a “humbug holiday” with a 3.4% overall increase in sales and a deceleration in e-commerce growth, according to a new forecast from retail industry consulting and research firm Customer Growth Partners.

Menomonee Falls, Wis. -- Kohl’s Department Stores will open its doors at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day and remain open through midnight Friday, Nov. 28. The retailer will also offer a variety of omnichannel holiday services, including a daily “Today’s Deals” section on Kohls.com.  

On the heels of moderating expectations for its third quarter performance, Kohl’s announced plans to improve results during the holidays, including an around the clock opening schedule beginning at 6 p.m. Thanksgiving Day.

Kohl’s will open its doors at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day and remain open through midnight Friday, Nov. 28. The retailer will also offer a variety of omnichannel holiday services, including a daily “Today’s Deals” section on Kohls.com.

Get it before it’s gone is the message Amazon is sharing with holiday shoppers as it looks to drive sales of limited duration “Lightning Deals” supported by enhanced same day delivery capabilities.

Amazon’s countdown to Black Friday and then Christmas involves a strategy of featuring roughly 15,000 products the online retailer promotes as Lightning Deals because of reduced pricing during a tight promotional window.