Retail

New York -- GameStop announced that it will be an early adopter of the Microsoft Azure cloud platform, becoming one of the first retailers to use Azure to stream video game and promotional content direct to customer and store associate mobile devices.

New York -- Former Coach Inc. chief Lew Frankfort has joined Sycamore Partners as an Executive in Residence, which will allow the private equity firm to tap into Frankfort’s retail knowledge, managerial expertise and network of industry relationships. Sycamore’s portfolio of retail investments includes Aeropostale, Coldwater Creek, Hot Topic, Jones New York, Nine West Holdings, Stuart Weitzman and Talbots.

New York -- Vestis Retail Group, which operates Bob’s Stores, Eastern Mountain Sports and Sport Chalet, has selected Epicor Software Corp.’s SaaS solutions to power its expanding retail sporting goods apparel and equipment business.

While an increasing number of retailers are using smartphones and tablets as mobile payment terminals, the payment process can be tricky. Now leading payments provider Verifone has a solution to that problem: PAYware Mobile e355.

Verifone’s new mPOS terminal will support all mobile payment platforms and devices, and will be a valuable option for retailers looking to deploy a mobile POS system without being locked into a single ecosystem.

Washington, D.C. -- President Barack Obama on Monday proposed strengthening laws against identity theft, described as a growing problem that costs billions of dollars. Part of Obama’s proffered solution is requiring notification when consumer information is hacked.

Lincolnshire, Ill. --- Zebra Technologies Corporation released survey results that revealed nearly all retailers are ready to make the changes required to adopt the Internet of Things (IoT). The survey, conducted in October 2014 by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Zebra Technologies, also showed that a majority of retailers believe IoT will be the most important technological initiative of the decade.

Some of the key findings from the survey include:

There have been many bold predictions about retail trends, but not as many predictions about trends when it comes to the future of retail payments in the digital age. Well, for PayPal, it seems as though the future is now.

New York -- NRF president Matthew Shay told attendees of retail’s Big Show in New York City this week that the industry is well positioned for 2015 – with support from Washington, D.C.