Artificial Intelligence

BENSALEM, Pa. — Charming Shoppes is making it easier than ever for women to design and share their favorite looks. On the heels of the successful launch of their new fit and style technology, Fashion Genius, Lane Bryant and its sister brands Catherines, Fashion Bug and Sonsi have further enabled the customer's shopping experience by enabling women to build personalized outfits based on their Fashion Genius fit and style profile, share their outfit creations across their preferred social network and vote for their favorite customer created looks.

It’s a safe bet that Andrew Pole will never talk to another reporter after the treatment he and Target received in a piece in the Feb.16 edition of The New York Times with the headline, “How companies learn your secrets.”

New York City -- Canadian department store retailer The Bay is testing a virtual greeter at its Toronto flagship, according to the Globe & Mail.

The greeter, a life-like digital image of a female that is projected on a glass panel, is located near an interactive display of high-end gifts on the main floor. Named Anna, the image is prompted by sensors in the ceiling to start talking when customers approach.

The system was developed by 4D Retail Technology Corp., according to the report.

Omni-channel, seamless customer experience, empowered consumers and mobile commerce were among the buzzwords at the National Retail Federation’s Annual Convention & EXPO in New York City. The show attracted a record 25,000 retail executives, suppliers and consultants, the most in its 101-year history. Reflecting the global nature of retail, there were some 5,500 international participants from 78 countries.

New York City -- Saks Inc. fourth-quarter net income climbed 48% amid strong sales of handbags, fine jewelry and men's and women's apparel. The earnings topped expectations.

For the period ended Jan. 28, Saks earned $37 million, compared with $25 million last year. Quarterly revenue rose 7% to $925.1 million from $866.3 million, beating Wall Street's $918.9 million estimate.

Same-store sales were up 7.7%.

SAN FRANCISCO — Three-of-every-4 consumers using smartphones and tablets respond to a call to action after seeing a location-specific message, according to the Mobile Audience Insights Report issued by JiWire on Wednesday.

Lancaster, Pa. -- One of the supermarket chains operated by Netherlands-based Royal Ahold has installed rooftop solar panels at two of its stores.

Carlisle, Pa.-based Giant Food Stores — also known as Giant-Carlisle to distinguish it from Landover, Md.-based Giant Food, also owned by Ahold — said it had installed solar photovoltaic systems at stores in Lancaster and Pottstown, Pa.

Supply chain optimization solutions provider Quintiq Inc., announced that Walmart selected the company’s next-generation load assignment and dispatch system to lower the total miles driven and improve fleet efficiency.

“We are delighted with Walmart's choice of Quintiq,” said Victor Allis, CEO of Quintiq. “We believe this demonstrates that no supply chain is too large or complex for our state-of-the-art supply chain optimization software.”