Sales & Marketing

Any given week Target’s circular is filled with various offers of free gift cards designed to incent shoppers to purchase key items.  Some of the offers can be quite generous, as was the case this week with a $50 gift card available to those who purchase an Xbox 360 bundle or a $20 gift card with the purchase of KitchenAid appliances priced at $99.99. The most common gift card denomination is $5, and it tends to be offered on multiple items from the same manufacturer or brand family such as two Gillette razors or three Dial products.

New York City -- Macy’s announced that its namesake stores across the country will open at midnight on Nov. 25, the midnight of Thanksgiving night, to kick off the 2011 holiday shopping season. It is the first time that Macy’s has opened its doors chainwide at midnight. The company’s Bloomingdale’s unit will open its doors on Black Friday at 8 a.m.

Last year, Macy's opened eight stores at midnight. The rest of the stores opened at 4 a.m.

Kansas City, Mo. -- H&R Block said it will provide tax preparation services in an estimated 300 Wal-Mart locations nationwide beginning in December.

“This new partnership with the world's largest retailer allows us to serve more customers at times and locations that fit their busy lifestyles,” said H&R Block president and CEO Bill Cobb.

H&R Block will offer its products and services at its kiosks in Wal-Mart.
 

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Earth911, an organization that gathers, distributes and analyzes localized recycling information to assist manufacturers, organizations and consumers with product end-of-life solutions, announced that Patricia Kimball, Ph.D., has joined the company as VP retail strategy group.

“Her understanding and experience with implementing end-of-life solutions is directly relevant to Earth911’s corporate mission and goals. We’re thrilled to have Patty join our team of experts.”

New York City -- Walmart will open its first store in the United States that utilizes all-LED lighting on the interior. The store, a Walmart Neighborhood Market, is located at 2111 N. Amidon, Wichita, Kan. It will open on Nov. 2.

The company said it expects to see a 40% savings on the energy-efficient lights, which also last at least six years beyond conventional lighting, reducing maintenance costs.

It was a wonderful weekend to be a coupon clipper, especially for shoppers looking to load their pantry with P&G brands. In Sunday newspapers this weekend, the consumer goods giant dropped its P&G Brand Saver insert, which featured some very high value coupons, including one for $2 off a 100-ounce jug of Tide that was ostensibly offered as a gift to shoppers to commemorate the detergent’s 65th anniversary.

New York City -- Walmart is scaling back from its round-the-clock, 24-hour operating schedule at select U.S. locations, according to USA Today.

The decision on whether to keep stores open 24 hours is a store-to-store decision, the report said, and does not mean the chain as a whole is retreating from its 24-hour format.

Click here to read the full story.

The latest pricing studying from Deutsche Bank analyst Charles Grom shows a basket of 50 items is still cheaper at Walmart than Target, but by a slimmer margin than in the past.