Sales & Marketing

Wayfair is forming a partnership that aims to meet the basic needs of its core customers.

Northbrook, Ill. - Hilco Merchant Resources LLC (HMR), a provider of retail disposition services such as liquidation and acquisitions, has purchased online retail and daily deal e-commerce platform Deal Genius LLC.

Deal Genius was launched as a flash retail sales web business in 2004. The site delivers daily deals on brand name home goods, apparel, consumer electronics, pet supplies and other merchandise.  The company was founded by CEO Chris Matsakis, who will continue in that role going forward.  

Amazon is going to make it very easy for startups to launch, market and distribute their products to hundreds of millions of Amazon customers across the globe.

The retailer is launching a program called Launchpad, which offers a streamlined onboarding experience, custom product pages, a comprehensive marketing package, and access to Amazon’s global fulfillment network, all geared toward helping startups successfully launch their innovations and share their stories.

Office Depot Inc. is thinking teachers first with an omnichannel component at the core of its back-to-school promotion.

New York -- In its latest round of housecleaning, eBay is killing same-day deliveries and three mobile apps.

The company on Monday said it is shutting down eBay Now, a three-year-old service that allows customers to buy items from local sellers and then have the goods delivered as soon as the same day. The service, the company’s answer to the fast-growing on-demand delivery market, never really took off.

Bronto Software has released the 2015 version of its popular Holiday Resource Center to help retailers optimize marketing strategies and drive sale growth.

New York -- A survey released Monday is in line with other reports that consumers do not plan to spend more this year on back-to-school supplies than they did last year. The survey also lists the 10 most popular retail brands for back-to-school purchases.

Target ranks as the most popular retail brand for back-to-school purchases, just ahead of Walmart, in the 21st annual Back-to-School survey by Brand Keys, the New York-based brand loyalty and emotional engagement research consultancy. Macy’s, CVS and Best Buy round out the top five.

A month after the launch of the Apple watch, Best Buy will become the first national retailer to stock the new wearable.

The watch will be available in more than 100 Best Buy stores and on BestBuy.com. By the time holiday season arrives, an additional 200 stores will feature the watch.

“The Apple Watch is a big addition to our stores and website, and we know our customers want it,” said Jason Bonfig, senior category officer at Best Buy. “We are excited to bring the Apple Watch to more consumers, especially with the holidays coming up.”