Data & Analytics

One of the nation's most successful department store retailers may remove itself from the scrutiny and pressure of Wall Street.    

Hudson's Bay Co., whose banners include Saks Fifth Avenue and Lord & Taylor, has lowered the ax.  

Amazon’s lending program has hit epic proportions, with one-third of loans being granted in the last year, alone.   The online giant’s Amazon Lending program has surpassed $3 billion in loans to small businesses since the service launched in 2011. Specifically, Amazon has lent more than $1 billion to small businesses in the last 12 months, and more than 20,000 small businesses have received a loan from Amazon.  

An annual report provides an in-depth analysis of the front-burner issues facing America’s retail supply chains, and highlights tools and leading practices to compete in an evolving marketplace.  

The turnaround at extreme-value retailer 99 Cents Only Stores appears to be taking hold.   The retailer reported that net sales for its first quarter, ended April 28, increased 6.7% to $547.5 million, from $512.9 million in the year-ago period. Same-store sales increased 6.9%, with higher customer traffic of 4.2%, and a higher average ticket of 2.5%.  

Approximately 80% of low-income households will not opt for Amazon's new discounted Prime program.    That's according to a broadlines and hardlines retail report by Gordon Haskett Research Advisors analyst Chuck Grom, which looks at Amazon, Walmart, Dollar General and Dollar Tree as Amazon announced discounted Prime membership for those on federal assistance. Here are excerpts from Grom's report:   

Greg Portell, lead partner in the retail practice of A.T. Kearney, a global strategy and management consulting firm, answers a few questions regarding the news that Nordstrom may go private.    What does this move mean for Nordstrom — how might it play out?  

Digital retailing is intensifying, yet retail associates still don’t have the technology they need to serve customers when they visit in-store.   That's according to “The 2017 Retail Associate Technology Study,” from Salesfloor. The report, which surveyed 254 North American retail associates across a variety of product categories, compensation models and store sizes, explores the connection between store-level employees and the technology they use to serve customers.