eCommerce

Global ecommerce and payment processing leader First Data Corporation and Microsoft to simplify retailers ability to offer and redeem local deal offers.

The companies said that First Data’s OfferWise solution has been integrated with Microsoft’s Bing Offers Card-Linked which consolidates local deals from a number of deal providers. OfferWise is an open platform that enables retailers to electronically attach offers to any consumer payment card or mobile wallet to allow streamlined and automatic redemption of the offer at the point of sale.

Most retailers now have some sort of social presence, but too often it consists of having an account on popular social media networks and little more. Following are five examples of recent retail social media offerings that leverage social media’s unique ability to engage consumers, improve operations and boost profits.

American Eagle – ‘Rock Your Walk’

Dallas – Neiman-Marcus Group Inc. and Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) are reportedly seeking loans to support merger and acquisition activity.

According to Bloomberg, Neiman-Marcus is trying to secure $3.75 billion in loans to support its planned buyout by Ares Management LLC and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. That figure reportedly includes a $2.95 billion term loan and an $800 million asset-backed loan.

Fort Worth, Texas — Epiphany Boutique will open a 1,463-sq.-ft. store at West 7th, a mixed-use development at the intersection of West Seventh Street and University Drive in Fort Worth, according to Cypress Equities, the developers of West 7th.

The store is slated to open in early October. Centennial Retail Services represented the landlord. Epiphany Boutique represented itself.

 

New York -- Chain Store Age invites retailers, design firms, architects and suppliers to submit entires for its 33rd annual Retail Store of the Year design competition.     For more information and an entry form, click here.   

New York -- Shoppers in the United States are most likely to combine online and in-person sources when buying consumer electronics (70%), toys (66%), apparel (58%), and home appliances (57%), according to a new study by Gfk. At the low end of the omnichannel spectrum in the United States are cleaning products (14%), OTC medications (15%), and food and beverages (15%).

The study shows that, across 12 categories, 37% of U.S. shoppers – and 29% globally – are turning to both online and in-store shopping when making purchases.

Los Angeles — Mack Urban Real Estate Group and AECOM Capital have acquired six acres in the Los Angeles central business district. The $80 million transaction is the largest land acquisition in the CBD since before the recession. The seller was EVOQ Properties.

The acquisition is part of a Mack Urban and AECOM plan to build a portfolio of class A, institutional quality multifamily developments in West Coast gateway cities.

Boston – Women are more likely to have shopped online in the past year than men (57% compared to 52%), but men are more likely to have made a purchase via smartphone (22% compared to 18%) or tablet (20% compared to 17%), according to a new study from SeeWhy Conversion Academy.  

The report, “The Roles of Gender, Geography and Age in Mobile Commerce,” reveals that among 18-to-24-year-olds, women are actually more likely than men to shop via smartphone (21.6% compared to 21.3%) and tablet (20% compared to 14%).