Artificial Intelligence

Amazon.com and Walmart.com both sell products online, but that’s where the similarities end despite frequent efforts to compare the two.

Atlanta -- Around the world, consumers want it all, and they want it in the palm of their hand. According to a global study released by First Data, consumers worldwide expect strikingly similar mobile and technology-powered experiences from large and small businesses as well as financial institutions – and their expectations are fueled by skyrocketing smartphone usage.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens and Chicago-based solar developer SoCore Energy plan to build more than 200 new solar installations at Walgreens stores throughout California, Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York.

This latest expansion will bring the number of completed solar installations at Walgreens stores to more than 350, making the company the leading retailer in number of solar powered stores.

Traditional craftsmanship and the latest in technology help make for the perfect fit at The Left Shoe, a new luxury men’s footwear retail concept from Finland. 

Washington, D.C. -- Retailers and consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies are increasingly using technology to better connect with customers and drive profits, according to a new study from the Grocery Manufacturers Association and PwC US.

Results of “Growth Strategies: Unlocking the Power of the Consumer” indicate that despite generally slowing retail net sales growth in 2012, food, beverage and household products companies experienced positive net sales growth of 7%t, 5.5% and 3.2%, respectively.

By Peter Witham, [email protected]

Glenview, Ill. -- Eco Gym will open an 8,300-sq.-ft. solar- and human-powered health club at Glenbrook Market Place in Glenview, Ill., a North Shore suburb of Chicago, according to Mid-America Asset Management Inc., the landlord’s representative.

The fitness center, Eco Gym’s second, will use a combination of human kinetic power and solar power to generate electricity for its equipment. As members use the equipment, they generate more power to the central power grid, which lowers monthly dues.

STAMFORD, Conn. — With the housing market rebounding and home improvement on the upswing, GE Capital Retail Bank is looking to help contractors with a new business-building program called “Think Outside the Toolbox.”

HSN may have been a pioneer in using TV as a shopping channel, but the retailer is using emerging technology to become a much broader enterprise. As HSN CEO Mindy Grossman detailed during a keynote session at last week’s Internet Retailer conference in Chicago, this is not your mother’s HSN. Not by a long shot.

“We’re engaging consumers away from TV,” said Grossman. “There is a dramatic transformation of the consumer. They are being reshaped by technology, social networks and mobility.”

The retail industry is one sector where cash remains king and will continue to be ubiquitous for years to come. Yet despite this, the domain of cash management still remains a major challenge for retailers with cash being expensive to process and secure.