Mass Merchant

Walmart’s same store sales turned positive during the third quarter, ending a two year drought, prompting the company to forecast a U.S. comp increase of as much as 1% during the fourth quarter.

Minneapolis -- Promising an “Amazon-like experience” in its stores, Target Corp. has acquired a Pittsburgh technology firm that says its software platform brings "an Amazon-like shopping experience" to in-store customers.   Target and Powered Analytics co-founder Collin Otis have confirmed the deal but have not disclosed the terms. The firm will reported remain headquartered in Pittsburgh.  

Los Angeles -- BH Properties has announced the hire of Andrew Van Tuyle as chief acquisition officer. In this role, Van Tuyle will be responsible for the firm’s property and debt acquisitions throughout the Southwest.  

Washington, D.C. –- During the 2014 holiday season, spending on tiny plastic or digital gift cards will top all previous records. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF) Gift Card Spending Survey, the average person buying gift cards will spend $172.74, up from $163.16 in 2013. Total spending is expected to reach $31.74 billion.  

Gift card sales are expected to reach record levels again this holiday season and new research from the National Retail Federation (NRF) offers insight into the increased popularity of stored value products.

More than half of shoppers polled by NRF’s Gift Card Spending Survey said they will buy gift cards this holiday season because the cards allow the recipient to select their own gift. More than 25% of shoppers said gift cards are easier and faster to buy, and 3.8% said the cards help them stick to their holiday budgets.

New York -- According to Nielsen’s 2014 Holiday Retail Sales Forecast, nearly 25% of consumers polled had already started their holiday shopping in September. However, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are still relevant, as 52% of respondents in a just released Black Friday/Cyber Monday survey stated that they plan to venture into stores on Black Friday and 55% of respondents stated that they plan to fire up their computers for Cyber Monday. 

New York -- Ramping up for Black Friday, Amazon increased its product listings by 43% in the third quarter of 2014, adding four times as many SKUs to its website between July and September than it did in the entire first half of 2014. According to a report by CommerceHub, the online retail giant primarily grew products within the categories of electronics, home improvement and health & beauty.  

Walmart’s same store sales turned positive during the third quarter, ending a two year drought, prompting the company to forecast a U.S. comp increase of as much as 1% during the fourth quarter.