Artificial Intelligence

The Container Store credits its “employees-first” culture as integral to its success, believing that if you make employees your highest priority, they in turn will take better care of customers. It’s a business model that extends to all facets of the chain’s operations — including the decision to deploy a voice-directed warehouse picking system.

Armonk, N.Y. -- A survey released Thursday by IBM found that chief marketing officers and chief information officers must join forces in order to connect with today’s consumer across new channels including mobile devices and social networks.

Compared with most other industries, retail companies face shorter time horizons and tighter metrics. The pressure to perform is great, which perhaps explains why many retail firms are having trouble holding onto their top executives.

For example, one major U.S. retailer recently suffered the departures of a senior marketing executive, a division president and another executive VP, all within the space of a few months. One of those executives had lasted only five months, while another had a tenure of less than two years.

Chattanooga, Tenn. -- Mall owner CBL & Associates Properties announced Wednesday the launch of Me-Ality — a size-matching station for mall shoppers — at nine CBL malls across the United States.

Wading through retail technological innovations and deciding what options and applications should be top priority can be daunting at best. But the opportunities clearly outweigh the challenges, said Epicor Solutions’ Douglas Taylor in an interview with Chain Store Age.

What are the biggest operational challenges facing retailers today?

The phrase “big data,” is all the rage these days and IBM made a major move to drive growth.

The retail industry has long been chastised for not moving fast enough when it comes to technology innovation. Perhaps we are now making up for lost time as the industry has changed rapidly over the past ten years alone and retailers are investing in new solutions to keep pace. The evolution of technology has not only changed the way consumers shop, but changed the way retailers respond and how they operate.

The University of Arkansas Radio Frequency Identification Research Center will soon have a larger and permanent home following the unveiling this week of design plans for the new facility.