Microsoft

Microsoft introduced its HoloLens interactive 3-D virtual reality platform at the beginning of 2015. So far, it has not entered wide use among consumers or businesses.

According to The Verge, Microsoft is promoting HoloLens with a HoloLens Experience Showcase live demo area in its New York flagship store.

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Dan Berthiaume, senior editor of Chain Store Age, recently participated in a one-hour panel discussion, “Game-Changers 2016 Predictions – Part 1,” sponsored by SAP as part of its “Coffee Break with Game-Changers” Internet radio series.

One well-known technology provider takes the top spot in installed worldwide revenue for both retail software and retail software-as-a-service (SaaS).

According to a new study from IHL Group, “Total Retail Software Market,” Microsoft is ranked number one in both categories. IHL estimates the total worldwide retail software market is currently worth $44 billion and will grow 48% in the next five years. Microsoft’s share of retail software is estimated at $5.98 billion in installed revenue.

RANDOM NOTES: Microsoft made its Manhattan debut with a 22,369-sq.-ft. flagship on Fifth Avenue — its largest location yet. Designed in collaboration with Gensler, the store has a striking, all-glass facade that provides a full view of the contemporary, multi-level interior. High-definition video walls and digital signage are featured throughout the space, streaming video, images and information. A two-story video wall is located behind an “answer desk,” where shoppers can receive assistance and training. ...

So many new stores, so little space. Here are my top faves of the year:

The influx of new retail into New York City, from brands both familiar and ones new to our shores, continued unabated in 2015. Everyone has their favorites. Here are mine:

Flying Tiger

Microsoft made its Manhattan debut with a 22,369-sq.-ft. flagship on Fifth Avenue — its largest location to date.

Six years in the making, the store puts a spotlight on the software giant’s ever-expanding product line, and boasts the first-ever in-store display for Microsoft Surface Hub.

For the second time in less than a month, Costco has elected a veteran of the telecommunications industry to serve on the retailer's board of directors.

Costco announced that John W. Stanton, chairman of Trilogy International Partners, Inc., and Trilogy Equity Partners, has been elected to Costco's board. Stanton founded and served as chairman and CEO of Western Wireless Corporation, a wireless telecommunications company, from 1992 until shortly after its acquisition by ALLTEL Corporation in 2005.