Seasonal

Lux Beauty Boutique is rolling out in-store mobile app SelfPay, which lets shoppers handle payment and look up product information on their own devices, enabling shopper-controlled in-store checkout from anywhere within a brick-and-mortar store. Lux Beauty Boutique will host a SelfPay launch party at its store on Dec. 6.  

Ottawa, Ontario -- Black Friday deep discounts could be a myth, with only a few retailers dropping prices on only a few categories. Some key findings from pricing intelligence technology provider 360pi based on Amazon's own assortment in eight categories, including TVs, video games, tablets and digital cameras, show that:

Edmonton, Alberta -- Lux Beauty Boutique is rolling out in-store mobile app SelfPay, which lets shoppers handle payment and look up product information on their own devices, enabling shopper-controlled in-store checkout from anywhere within a brick-and-mortar store. Lux Beauty Boutique will host a SelfPay launch party at its store on Dec. 6.  

With the holiday shopping season underway and many retailers bracing for stiff competition, Kohl’s plans on keeping its doors open for more than 100 hours, from 6 a.m. Friday, Dec. 20 through 6 p.m. Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24.

Although the strategy is familiar to retailers such as Toys “R” Us, it is a first for Kohl’s. The move comes following a comparable-store sales increase of 0.9% for the second-quarter which fell short of Wall Street estimates.

Although sales at Express during Thanksgiving week exceeded last year's, results did not meet the company’s expectations and it’s bracing itself for a tough holiday shopping season.

The specialty retail apparel chain operating approximately 630 stores reported net sales of $503 million, an increase of 7% from $468.5 million in the third quarter of 2012. Comparable sales increased 5% versus a decline of 5% in last year's third quarter. E-commerce sales increased 29% to $71.2 million this quarter, above last year's third quarter increase of 21%.

New York -- Express Inc. reported net income of $19.3 million for the quarter ended Nov. 2, an 11% rise over last year’s $17.4 million profit.

Revenue increased 7.4% to $503 million, beating Wall Street’s expected $500 million in sales, and same-store sales increased 5%.

However, the specialty retailer lowered its guidance for the fiscal year as it said Thanksgiving week sales exceeded last year's levels but didn't meet expectations.

Target spent an estimated $28 million on advertising November 3-7, which netted it nearly 12% of retail traffic during Thanksgiving weekend, according to data released this week from Kantar Media Ad Intelligence and Placed.

Given the overwhelming emphasis on e-commerce, mobile apps and digital initiatives this holiday season, Target offered a trip down memory lane on its website, where it showcased some interesting marketing efforts.