eCommerce

Food has always been an important part of the shopping experience at Ikea, and the retailer is doubling down on that strategy by unveiling a new menu.  

Ikea announced it will be adding more nutritious and sustainable food options to its restaurants, bistros near the checkout, Swedish food markets and co-worker restaurants. The new food strategy highlights how important food is to the chain.

Japanese retailer Uniqlo's U.S. expansion is picking up speed as the company prepares to open its first-ever stores in the Seattle, Denver and Washington, D.C.

Japan’s largest eyewear brand is opening its first U.S. flagship store in California with a unique, gallery-like setting designed by San Francisco architecture firm Kwan Henmi.

Shoppers at JINS will be able to choose trendy, customized eyeglass styles for each face and personality with affordable prices ranging from $60 to $120, including high-quality aspheric lenses.

Bed Bath & Beyond indicated in its fourth quarter earnings report that it may be joining Walmart and other retailers with plans to increase wages.

The company said it is lowering its 2015 earnings guidance due to "an increase in investments in compensation and benefits in 2015 beyond those historically planned."

New York -- Rising rents and increased online competition have claimed one of downtown Manhattan’s most iconic retail stores, Pearl River Mart in SoHo. The Chinese department store, which opened its doors in 1971, will close at the end of its current lease in December.

New York -- Upscale footwear brand Stuart Weitzman has launched its first Instagram-based advertising campaign. The online campaign features Cinemagraps, which animates a portion of a photo so that it looks like a video. It was done in collaboration with Jamie Beck and Kevin Burg of Ann Street Studio.

Toronto -- Hudson’s Bay Company’s net profit in the fourth quarter jumped to C$111 million (USD $88.9 million) from C$37 million ,in the year-ago period, helped by strong digital sales, the successful integration of Saks Fifth Avenue and the strong U.S. dollar. The retailer said it plans to accelerate openings of Saks’ off-price Off 5th brand and strengthen its digital and omnichannel capabilities in its current fiscal year.  

New York -- The United States is the top market for e-commerce, followed by China and the United Kingdom, according to A.T. Kearney’s 2015 Global Retail E-Commerce Index. Although e-commerce remains less than 10% of total retail sales in the United Sates, it has seen consistent growth, and rose by 15% in 2014.

New York – Japanese retailer Uniqlo continues its U.S. expansion with plans open its first-ever stores in the Seattle, Denver and Washington, D.C., metro areas.

In the state of Washington, the retailer will open a 13,000-sq.-ft. location at Seattle’s The Bellevue Collection this fall. In spring/summer 2015, the retailer will open a 10,000-sq.-ft. store at Tyson's Corner Center, and a 22,000-sq.-ft. store on Denver's 16th Street, at The Denver Pavilions.

Seattle – Nordstrom Inc. plans to open two new Nordstrom Rack stores in Pittsburgh and Novi, Michigan. The 40,000-sq.-ft. Pittsburgh store is scheduled to open in fall 2016 at The Block Northway mall.