Mass Merchant

Toys ”R” Us says a planned decrease in promotions led the retailer to report a drop in same-store sales in the second quarter.

The retailer singled out declines in the baby, entertainment and seasonal categories as contributing to the comp drop as well. However new CEO Dave Brandon sounded a positive tone regarding the company’s profit potential.

Virtually all U.S. consumers will do at least some holiday shopping online this year.

According to the new Consumer Pulse survey from Rubicon Project, more than one-third of shoppers anticipate conducting the majority of their shopping online.

Consumers who conduct most of their holiday shopping online plan to spend 20% more than consumers who plan to do the majority of their shopping in-store. Amazon.com is the top holiday shopping destination, followed by Walmart and Target.  

Target is entering the grocery delivery fray by offering its customers same-day delivery of groceries and other items through Instacart as a way to challenge Amazon and other retailers.

Target announced Tuesday it would begin testing an on-demand grocery delivery service via Instacart that initially will only be available in parts of Minneapolis, where Target is headquartered. But the retailer noted in a release on its blog A Bullseye View that the two companies are already exploring plans to expand the service into additional areas and markets in the future.

Organized crime is on the rise — and it’s taking a heavy financial toll on the nation’s retailers.

Retailers on average report they lost $453,940 per $1 billion in annual sales over the past year due to organized crime, according to the National Retail Federation’s 11th annual Organized Retail Crime Survey, which put a $30 billion price tag on the problem.  

Bentonville, Ark. – On the same day Target launched a pilot of the Instacart online grocery delivery service, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced it will expand its existing grocery pickup service.

Since its launch in July, Jet.com is surpassing other retailers on gross merchandise value and doing a good job of building customer loyalty, according to Channeladvisor.

According to The Washington Post, Jet has had a 23% repeat buyer rate, better than the 17% seen at eBay and the 11% seen at Amazon during the same time period.

Best Buy is looking to keep its customers as connected as possible, with a little help from AT&T.

Starting this month, new AT&T shop-within-a-shops at select Best Buy stores will provide what the two companies are calling a “#ConnectedLife” experience.

“Now Trending” is an exclusive online series to chainstoreage.com, featuring trending topics that impact the retail real estate landscape.

At a time when the growing influence of millennials and the ongoing development, redevelopment and revitalization of urban communities continue to shape the commercial development landscape, the changes taking place in the hotel and multi-family sectors reflect many of those same demographic and development trends.