Mass Merchant

Summer is an interesting time in the world of retail. With lazy vacation-stilted months in June and July and the comparatively bustling back-to-school energy of August, it is a season of contradictions. While, yes, the unique challenges and opportunities of summer sales patterns and scheduling are different than any other time of the year, understanding what is likely on tap for retailers this summer requires an appreciation for certain universal factors that play a role no matter what the calendar says.  

Amazon currently accounts for one in three shopping transactions in North America, but few details about the e-tail giant’s product assortment have not been readily available. Until now.    

Wal-Mart Stores is undertaking a series of executive changes at its international divisions, starting with a new head for its struggling United Kingdom business, Asda.
 
Andy Clarke, president and CEO of Asda, will step down on July 11, after having worked at the British company for more than 20 years. Asda has been under heavy competitive pressure and has reported seven straight quarterly sales declines.

In their never-ending quest to make the store shopping experience as seamless and painless as possible, an increasing number of retailers are offering variants of curbside pickup.   This simply means consumers can order goods online and then have the items delivered to their car as they wait, usually within five to 10 minutes. Some retailers accept payment ahead of time, while others execute the transaction on the spot with a mobile POS device.  

High-quality malls and lifestyle centers are best positioned to capitalize on the shift toward experience-based spending.    That’s according to a new study by the research arm of MetLife Investment Management (MIM), which finds that millennials’ preference for acquiring experiences and memories over material goods will play a significant role in determining which retail formats will outperform in the future.   

Target Corp. is testing some of the concepts from its innovative Open House format in San Francisco in a traditional store setting.   The discounter has debuted Connected Living, an in-store experience dedicated to showing customers how connected products can work together to make life easier, more convenient and more efficient. The test is taking place in Target’s Ridgedale location in Minnetonka, Minnesota.   

In their never-ending quest to make the store shopping experience as seamless and painless as possible, an increasing number of retailers are offering variants of curbside pickup.   This simply means consumers can order goods online and then have the items delivered to their car as they wait, usually within five to 10 minutes. Some retailers accept payment ahead of time, while others execute the transaction on the spot with a mobile POS device.  

Oregon, a new market for CVS Health, is the latest market where Target pharmacies have been successfully transitioned to CVS Health, the Rhode Island pharmacy operator announced Wednesday. The new CVS pharmacies, located in several metropolitan areas, including Portland, Eugene and Medford, are being operated through a store-within-a-store format.