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Mass Merchant

  • TechBytes: Staying Competitive on Amazon Prime Day

    Tuesday, July 12 marks the return of Amazon Prime Day.   Based on last year’s results, Amazon will grab a sizable chunk of all online sales that day. Special “countdown deals” starting July 5 will also help funnel more e-commerce traffic than normal in Amazon’s direction. Walmart is countering with its own July online sales event built around its ShippingPass free shipping program.  

  • Report: Visa sues Walmart over alleged PIN pilot

    Wal-Mart Stores, which filed suit against Visa in May over debit card authorization, is getting taste of its own medicine.  

  • Survey: Back-to-school means back to spending

    Parents are increasing their back-to-school budgets, although overall spending is stagnant compared to recent years.   According to a new survey of 1,830 U.S. parents of elementary through college students by Mintel, 52% of respondents plan to spend more on back-to-school (BTS) shopping than in 2015. Only 4% plan to spend less, with 44% planning to spend the same. However, overall planned BTS spending dropped to $68 billion in 2015 after ranging from $73 - $76 billion annually from 2010-2014.  

  • UPS, 7-Eleven offer seamless commerce assistance

    Online retailers who want to offer physical pickup of their goods have a new option.   Partnering with various retailers including 7-Eleven, UPS is expanding its “smart locker” program from nine locations in Chicago to 300 locations nationwide. UPS is adding 300 new Access Point locations nationwide. The lockers are usually outside and accessible 24 hours a day at convenience stores and other sites.  

  • It's back .... Amazon Prime Day

    Everyone knew Amazon Prime Day was coming, now we know when and how.   Amazon will host its second annual summer sales blitz, known as Prime Day, on July 12. The online giant created the mega-shopping event, aimed at members of its Prime loyalty program, last year. It was held on July 15 and marked the retailer's 20th anniversary. Amazon said the event broke sales records that it previously set during Black Friday 2014.  

  • Target gets ‘smart’ about lighting

    Target Corp. is taking its lighting to the next level.   The retailer has entered into an agreement with Acuity Brands for Acuity to provide Target with smart lighting technologies, featuring energy saving LED fixtures and dimming controls.    Target will be installing Acuity’s next generation, smart LED sales floor fixtures, along with the lighting company’s store accent lighting and distribution center site lighting.   

  • Another department store retailer is getting a new CEO

    It’s the end of an era for Belk Inc.   The retailer announced that Tim Belk will retire as CEO of the company in July 2016. Lisa Harper, CEO of Hot Topic, will succeed Belk as CEO, effective July 5.     The news comes less than a year after Belk, which operates 293 stores in 16 Southern states, was acquired in a $3 billion deal by Sycamore Partners. The private equity firm also owns Hot Topic.        

  • Proposed new food stamp rules would impact some retailers

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture is considering new regulations that could it make it difficult for smaller stores to accept food stamps.  
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