Seasonal

Now that Verizon has the iPhone, AT&T is offering some sweet offers to hang onto its existing subscribers, and it has enlisted the aid of Target to accomplish that objective. Target began selling the iPhone last November three months after announcing a partnership with RadioShack to offer mobile centers in its stores, and on Friday series of trade-in opportunities were offered at the 846 stores where TargetMobile is available. 

No offense to the grammatically challenged recording artist known as Meatloaf, but the notion that “two out of three ain’t bad” doesn’t apply when the issue is monthly same-store sales at Target.

ITASCA, Ill. -- Jewel-Osco announced that it is partnering with the American Heart Association (AHA) to raise awareness and funds for the AHA's "Go Red For Women" campaign against heart disease, the leading cause of death for American women.

Jacksonville, Fla. -- Shopping center owner and developer Regency Centers said Monday that it has broken ground on a $10 million renovation of its Heritage Plaza, a 226,998-sq.-ft. retail center in Irvine, Calif.

The renovation of the Ralph’s-anchored center is scheduled for completion in November 2011.

New York City -- January saw strong growth across most retail categories, continuing the positive performance from fourth quarter 2010, albeit at a slightly slower pace, according to MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse, a report on national retail and services sales that is based on aggregate sales activity in the MasterCard payments network and survey-based estimates for other payment forms, such as cash and check.

LOS ANGELES —  According to PriceGrabber survey on consumer purchasing decisions for Valentine's Day, 52% of Valentine’s Day shoppers indicate that the economy will not have any effect on their purchasing decisions for Valentine’s Day 2011. Despite their confidence in the economy, 78% of survey respondents indicate they will not spend more money on Valentine’s Day shopping this year compared with last year. The remaining 22% of consumers plan to spend more on Valentine’s Day shopping this year.

RESTON, Va.  -- According to comScore's Q4 2010  U.S. retail e-commerce sales estimates, online retail spending reached a record $43.4 billion for the quarter, up 11% versus year ago. This growth rate represented the fifth consecutive quarter of positive year-over-year growth and second quarter of double-digit growth rates in the past year.

Retail sales during January offered a mix bag of results and made it rather tricky to determine how much results were influenced by harsh winter weather, gift card redemption rates, a still shaky economic recovery and individual company strategies.