Deloitte

New York -- Parents and their children in grades K-12 will spend a combined $543 on back-to-school items, and double that, at $1,223, on college spending. According to new survey data from Deloitte, parents alone expect to spend 13% less than in 2013.

Manhattan Associates Momentum 2014

“We will have real-time temperature monitoring by the end of the year. Imagine what that means.”

— Tony Thompson, president and COO, Papa John’s International Inc.

“It’s hard to talk to anyone at Amazon. Everything has to be automated through their site.

New York -- Consumers have “no regrets” when it comes to dropping national food, beverage and household brand names from their shopping lists. In fact, nine-in-10 shoppers stick to store brands. Those are among the findings of a new survey Deloitte.

According to Deloitte’s American Pantry Study, 88% respondents say they have found several store brands that are just as good as national brands and that allow them to feel as though they are saving money without giving up anything.
 

Groupe Dynamite eases global expansion with new tech platform

Having the potential for growth that exceeds the capability of your existing systems is a good problem to have, but it is still a problem. Groupe Dynamite, a fast-fashion women’s apparel retailer based in Montreal, faced that very challenge in early 2010.

As announced in February, The Coca-Cola Company’s board has today elected Kathy N. Waller as EVP and CFO. Waller is replacing Gary Fayard who is retiring after 20 years with the company.

HSN recognized the ExactTarget Marketing Cloud from salesforce.com (CRM) as its “Strategic Digital Alliance” partner for the year for transforming the company’s digital marketing program. The company was honored at HSN’s 4th annual awards gala in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Seattle -- Starbucks on Wednesday released its 13th Global Responsibility Report, which highlights the company’s progress on long-term goals for community engagement, sustainability and ethical sourcing. The coffee giant also announced the launch of its fourth annual Global Month of Service, with Starbucks employees, customers and community members once again coming together to help contribute more than one million community service hours per year by 2015.

New York -- Just one-quarter (25%) of consumers consider loyalty programs important when choosing a restaurant. According to a new study from Deloitte, 50% of survey respondents said they belong to at least one restaurant program, a much lower rate compared with those of other sectors, such as airlines (78%) and hotels (70%).