Retail

From LEDs and controls to rebates and incentives, lighting presents retailers with a myriad of opportunities for savings. Chain Store Age spoke with Regency Lighting’s Judah Regenstreif about lighting trends and the potential for savings, in new stores and existing locations.

What are some of the major trends Regency is seeing in retail lighting?

From online social sharing to location-based targeting to new payment technologies, the retail experience is being upended and disrupted in ways big and small. Ten companies are leading the charge.

Gamers will be heading to the cloud this summer when Sony Computer Entertainment marks the U.S. debut of its streaming game service branded as PlayStation Now.

An 18,000-sq.-ft. Hofbrauhaus restaurant has broken ground at Grandview Yard in Grandview Heights, Ohio, according to Nationwide Realty Investors, the developer of the $500 million mixed-use project. Hofbrauhaus Columbus will resemble the legendary 420-year-old Hofbrauhaus in Munich, Germany. The restaurant will include a large bier hall for live entertainment, an old world German-style dining room and an outdoor bier garden.

Japan’s biggest e-commerce player uses third-party marketplace model to expand

Most U.S. consumers, and many retailers for that matter, have probably never heard of Rakuten. But if Japan’s largest e-commerce marketplace has its way, that will soon change: The company has set its sights on becoming a household name in the United States. An even loftier goal: outpacing e-commerce giant Amazon.com.

Ann Arbor, Mich. – Amazon.com and L.L. Bean tied for the highest company-level customer satisfaction scores during the 2013 holiday season. According to the ForeSee Experience Index: 2013 U.S. Retail Edition, Amazon and L.L. Bean both scored 90, while Priceline had the lowest company-level satisfaction score (75) of 100 top retailers included in the Index.

The study offers a comprehensive view of satisfaction at the company-level and across every applicable sales channel including store, contact center, web and mobile.

ChannelAdvisor, a leading provider of cloud-based e-commerce solutions, has appointed Diana Semel Allen as VP and general counsel. In her new role, Allen will oversee the company’s worldwide legal functions, including regulatory compliance, commercial affairs, mergers and acquisitions, litigation and intellectual property management.

New York -- On Tuesday, Mexican retail company Grupo Gigante said in a regulatory filing that it will list shares in Office Depot de Mexico, the local division of the U.S. office-supply chain it purchased last year.

The listing would be public in Mexico and private in the United States and other markets.