Sales & Marketing

Staples is getting into the “Shark Tank” to attract more small business owners to its stores by teaming up with ABC’s popular TV show.

The retailer will sponsor debut products from inventors on ABC’s “Shark Tank” television show and on Staples.com and in select Staples stores. The successful entrepreneurs behind the products will be featured during three episodes of ABC’s “Shark Tank” starting April 10.

By Andy Wong, co-founder and VP of client services, Mobispoke

The rapid adoption of e-commerce in the digital age has fundamentally changed the way people shop. The online shopping experience today is not only richer and more engaging than in-store, but it is also personalized to each individual consumer, offering outfit pairings and special discounts based on a consumer’s profile.

Cold weather in February caused profits to slide at Family Dollar Stores Inc. ahead of its impending merger with Dollar Tree.

Camp Hill, Pa. – Rite Aid Corp. beat Wall Street expectations with soaring profit in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. The retailer reported net income of $1.83 billion, exponentially larger than net income of $55.4 million in the same quarter a year earlier.

A favorable tax asset valuation drove the substantial profit growth. Revenues rose 4% to $6.8 billion from $6.6 billion, mostly due to a same-store sales increase of 4.5%.

Seattle – Amazon.com styles itself as a provider of everything its customers need, and that extends to software development. Amazon has selected Seta International as an official Amazon Software Solutions Provider.

When evaluating the flooring in a new store or a remodel, installation is key.  Meet Mark Chichak with Halex Corp., who discusses how a company that doesn’t make the flooring – but, rather makes the installation materials and tools – can be a key partner in creating solutions for faster, easier and more profitable ways to build and remodel stores.

San Francisco – Jins Eyewear, Japan’s largest eyewear brand by volume, will open its first U.S. store on April 10, in San Francisco's Union Square neighborhood. The 4,900-sq.-ft. space will house more than 1,200 different styles of Jins exclusive eyewear.

New York -- Upscale footwear brand Stuart Weitzman has launched its first Instagram-based advertising campaign. The online campaign features Cinemagraps, which animates a portion of a photo so that it looks like a video. It was done in collaboration with Jamie Beck and Kevin Burg of Ann Street Studio.