Data & Analytics

Executing merchandise optimization, or at least performing it so the end game is won, can be confusing and convoluted since “optimization” seeps into almost every retail activity. Are we talking assortments, space, price, promotion, categories, merchandise or some combination?

Terms are irrelevant. Results are not. Merchandise optimization must deliver and reverberate success among every store and online channels. It must drive shopper loyalty, and must be executed to maximize margins, beat competitors and draw in your shoppers.

Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing (ECRM) is increasing its value to retailers and suppliers with the introduction of a new service called the ECRM Content Gateway.
 

Burger King Germany deals with orders more complex than customers requesting Whoppers “their way.”

Operating 700 franchised stores, the Munich-based Burger King subsidiary must process 1,800 daily orders from a diverse set of franchisees. Thus the retailer needed a stable, centralized back-end logistics platform.

Lowe’s Companies Inc. is trying to make its Iris smart home solution more accessible. The home improvement retailer is the newest participant member of the ZigBee Alliance.

Launched in July 2012, Iris by Lowe’s is a smart home solution created to monitor and control virtually everything in the home anytime, anywhere. Lowe’s is the most recent of 450 members currently working to develop and promote ZigBee Internet of Things (IoT) standards.

Orlando, Fla. -- Even though tropical storm Erika threatened Orlando, Florida, in advance of the ICSC Florida Deal-Making event earlier this month, attendees’ moods weren’t in the least dampened by the occasional rain showers. Attendance was strong and interest was high, as shopping center companies showed their wares to prospective tenants.

Social media plays an important role in the grocery shopping process. According to a new study from market research firm Packaged Facts, “Retail Food Marketing Trends in the U.S.: Technology, Mobile, and Social Media,” a majority of grocery store shoppers use social media to get recipes (59%).

Even though Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, a National Retail Federation consumer survey projects spending will decline compared to last year.

Neiman Marcus reported modest sales and a reduced loss for fourth quarter as it eyes an initial public stock offering and a bright omnichannel future.

Neiman Marcus posted a net loss of $32.9 million for the fourth quarter, compared to a net loss of $42.1 million in the year ago period.

Revenues at the company’s 43 full-line department stores and 42 Last Call off-price stores increased 4.9% to $1.17 billion. Same-store sales increased 1.9% for the fourth quarter ended Aug. 1.

Membership buying club DirectBuy is taking its direct sales model to a new level of directness. The retailer has launched the My DirectBuy mobile app.

The iOS and Android app allows DirectBuy to search for products, browse promotions, and place and track orders on the companion My DirectBuy website.

When it comes to selling products online, retailers want to go wherever their customers go. According to the 2015 E-Commerce Benchmark Survey from Boston Retail Partners, close to half (45%) of surveyed retailers indicated that mobile websites are their most important e-commerce capability.