Data & Analytics

Apparel, accessories retailer taps Stages Stores exec as CEO
Francesca's Holdings Corp. has found a chief executive. The retailer appointed Steven P. Lawrence, who currently serves as chief merchandising officer for Stage Stores, as president and CEO. Lawrence, who was also appointed to the company’s board, will officially join Francesca’s in October 2016. Lawrence replaces Richard Kunes, who has been serving as Francesca’s interim chairman, president and CEO since May 2016. Kunes will become the company’s chairman of the board.
Study: Gaps exist between online and store experiences
Consumers have made it clear: they want to shop across a brand holistically, not a company’s individual channels. Yet, a lack of unified customer experiences continues to haunt customer service, and fails to drive customer loyalty. These details were revealed in “In-Store Meets Online: Unifying the Retail Customer Experience,” a report from Kibo, a cloud-based unified omnichannel commerce platform provider.

Helzberg strives for multichannel VIP customer experiences

Helzberg Diamonds is committed to “making people feel loved.” By adopting a set of multichannel customer experience management solutions, the jeweler is taking the next step to “wowwing” its shoppers with more personalized customer service cross-channel.
Five reasons why Walmart bought Jet.com

With its deal to buy Jet.com officially close, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon decided to answer a question that many folks have been asking: Why Jet.com? In a blog on its website, McMillon listed the top five reasons it bought the online startup. The top reason: to better serve Walmart customers and reach new ones.
Pennsylvania center gets innovative traffic control system

The new Hamilton Crossings shopping center in Lower Macungie Township, Pennsylvania, will benefit from an innovative new traffic control system that manages signal timing based on continuously monitored traffic volumes. The system allows traffic approaching the center from a major artery to the mall “largely unstopped” by lights, township engineer Alan Fornwalt told Allentown’s Morning Call.
Wal-Mart closes Jet.com deal

It’s official: Wal-Mart is ready to service a new online customer base. Wal-Mart’s acquisition of Jet.com was finalized yesterday, a move that extends the chain’s already vast digital presence.
Express beats customer expectations through outsourced services

Omnichannel has pushed the envelope on customer expectations, and retailers need to deliver — literally. Express is not only meeting customer expectations, it is exceeding them by outsourcing its fulfillment and freight operations to Radial. The omnichannel technology and operations provider’s Richwood, Kent.-based fulfillment center features space specifically built out to support Express’ back-end omnichannel needs.
Report: EMV adoption remains sluggish

Chip-based payment terminals seem to be everywhere. But that does not mean they are being used the way they intended. However, almost a year after the imposed Europay, MasterCard, Visa (EMV) mandate deadline, barely one-third of retailers actually accept chip-based payments, according to an infographic from The Strawhecker Group (TSG).
Shoptalk to launch in Europe

Shoptalk Commerce, the organizer of U.S. retail and e-commerce event Shoptalk, announced the launch of Shoptalk Europe, to be held at The Bella Center in Copenhagen on October 9-11, 2017, following Shoptalk’s U.S. event, which will take place at the Aria in Las Vegas on March 19-22, 2017.
Dunkin’ Donuts opens milestone store

It’s 12,000 stores and counting for Dunkin’ Donuts. The chain on Tuesday opened its 12,000th restaurant worldwide, in Riverside, California. The new location is part of Dunkin’s strategic westward expansion. It plans to open more than 30 new restaurants in California this year with plans for about 300 new locations total to be developed in the state over the coming years.
Retailers face labor shortages

The nation’s improving job market has a down side for the retail industry, particularly as the crucial holiday season arrives. With the U.S. employment rate declining and minimum wages rising, it’s getting more challenging and more expensive for retailers to attract the best workers, reported CNBC.
Walmart vet joins online retailer

Photo: Vidya Jwala Overstock.com has nabbed a Walmart VP. The online retailer named Vidya Jwala as senior VP of demand fulfillment, responsible for overseeing the e-commerce leader’s sourcing, merchandising, supply chain and customer-care businesses. Jwala joins Overstock from Walmart, where, as VP of merchandising and operations, he focused on merchandising planning, category management, pricing and costing.