eCommerce

The Finish Line Inc. on Friday posted Q2 sales that topped analysts expectations and announced a quicker-than-planned transition for its executive chairman   The athletic goods retailer reported a profit of $22.1 million, or 53 cents a share, in line with expectations, down from $25.9 million, or 57 cents a share, a year earlier.     Consolidated net sales for the quarter, ended Aug. 31, rose a 5.4% to $509.4 million, better than expected. Same-store store sales increased 5.1%, also topping forecasts.

Washington, D.C., is gaining a new grocery delivery service — one that is powered by rolling drones.   With municipal regulators approving the use of rolling delivery drones for urban deliveries, these bots will deliver groceries to mainly single- or double-occupant households, according to TechCrunch.com.  

Accenture, a global professional services company, has entered into an agreement to acquire Kurt Salmon, a global strategy consulting firm focused on the retail industry.   The acquisition will expand Accenture Strategy’s capabilities in delivering strategy consulting services to retailers and private equity firms in a world disrupted by digital.
   

As the battle between Walmart Canada and Visa over interchange rates rages on, Walmart Stores is making more strategic moves with Chase.    Walmart will now process credit and debit payments on ChaseNet, the bank's closed-loop network, across its 5,000-plus Walmart and Sam’s Club locations in the U.S., and on the Sam’s Club e-commerce site. Chase already processes payments for Walmart’s e-commerce channel.  

Hudson’s Bay Company plans to open Canada’s largest Saks Fifth Avenue store, in downtown Montreal.    Scheduled to open in fall 2018, the store will be co-located in the same building as Hudson’s Bay, which will undergo a multi-million dollar renovation. The new Saks will take up approximately 200,000 sq. ft. of the existing 650,000-sq.-ft. space.   

Photo: Ken Worzel   Top executives at department store retailer Nordstrom have been given new responsibilities.   The retailer said it has appointed Ken Worzel as president, Nordstrom.com. in a move to further accelerate its e-commerce, digital and mobile efforts.  

E-commerce may lose some appeal among shoppers this holiday season.   While some industry analysts are predicting more than 15% increases in e-commerce growth during the 2016 shopping season, NetElixir’s “2016 Holiday Outlook” report predicts that e-commerce growth may only hit 11%. This conservative gain is being blamed on earlier-than-usual promotions and purchasing of holiday gifts; retailers’ use of online marketplaces rather than exclusively selling directly on their sites, and the uncertain political environment.

The narrative is well established: Online sales are rising dramatically and having a major impact on brick-and-mortar retailers. The facts, however, are not quite so cut and dried. Internet sales still account for a remarkably small overall percentage of U.S. retail sales. A quarter century after Amazon’s first shipment was mailed, the Web accounts for less than 9% of U.S. retail sales. With sales of $500 billion, Walmart alone is the equivalent of six Amazons.