Department Store

The big news for retailers this holiday season has been the strong surge in online shopping. It’s not that high online volumes weren’t expected; estimates placed online purchases to be as high as 20% of total holiday sales this year.

It seems we’ve hit a tipping point, however, where online promotions are of equal or greater importance to Black Friday retail success than in-store promotions, and where Cyber Monday has morphed into Cyber Week.

Roosevelt Field in Garden City, New York, is offering shoppers an up-close look at some unusual and pricey holiday gift suggestions.

The center, owned by Simon, has teamed up with Neiman Marcus for the first ever Neiman Marcus' 2015 Fantasy Gifts public installation.

Strong same-store sales in the third quarter did not keep Genesco Inc. from lowering its guidance, as the company takes steps to reduce inventory through promotions and discounts.

The specialty retailer of hats and accessories said that for the third quarter ended Oct. 31, same-store sales increased 7%. Income was $32.9 million, or $1.43 per diluted share, compared to earnings from continuing operations of $28.8 million, or $1.21 per diluted share, for the prior year quarter. Revenue was $774 million from $723 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2015.

Despite overall declines in several key metrics, there were some good signs for brick-and-mortar retailers during November.

For many years, Black Friday sales promotions have defined the retail environment during the long Thanksgiving weekend. Despite evidence that Black Friday has lost some of its luster, it remains a very large shopping event and is actively contested by major retailers.

Indeed, according to the NRF, close to 102 million consumers shopped in brick-and-mortar stores over the Black Friday holiday weekend.

J.Crew Group didn’t get any relief in its third quarter. On the heels of another decrease in sales and a widening loss, the company is bringing in a former Ann Inc. executive to help turn things around.

J.Crew posted a net loss for the third quarter of $759.7 million, compared to a loss of $607.8 million in the year ago period. (The retailer noted that both this year and last year reflect the impact of pre-tax, non-cash impairment charges of $845.9 million and $684.0 million, respectively.)

Target Corp. is bringing back a beloved family film classic just in time for the holidays — and getting in some prime time high-profile marketing in the process.

The retailer has teamed up with ABC to show “Mary Poppins.” It's the first time in more than 13 years that the movie has been shown on television. The movie will be aired on Dec. 12, from 8 – 11 pm EST on ABC, which is owned by Disney.

Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th continues to expand north of the border.