Data & Analytics

NRF’s new playbook offers holiday help
Retailers will reveal their 2015 holiday strategies in the weeks ahead and as they do so the National Retail Federation is offering a powerful new resource filled with industry best practices to benchmark against for this year and beyond.

The newly released document is called the 2015 Holiday Planning Playbook and was compiled by top retailers over the course of the past year who served on various NRF councils focused on retail industry disciplines.
Futuristic fast-food eatery designed around technology
San Francisco -- The old-fashioned automat has been reborn as the nation’s first fully-automated, high-tech fast-food restaurant.

Eatsa, a start-up restaurant concept, has opened its first location, in downtown San Francisco near the financial district. The format combines two of the city’s biggest interests: healthy eating and innovative technology. And don’t worry about tipping — there is almost no human interaction in the entire Eatsa experience.

Hackers hit pizza chain through POS vendor

Elgin, Ill. – The latest retail breach to become public knowledge targeted a small chain, but involved a third-party vendor.

Village Pizza & Pub, a two-store local pizza chain headquartered in Elgin, Illinois, was notified on July 27 of a security breach by TransformPOS, the company that provides its POS payment card processing system.
Jet.com founder acknowledges pricing confusing

New York -- Maybe Jet.com should have kept it more simple.

Online shopping site Jet.com launched in July with a promise of the lowest prices on the Web. Only problem is, not all consumers can figure out the site’s prices.
Belk omnichannel promo looks like winner

Charlotte, N.C. – Belk Inc. looks like it has found a winner in a just-completed omnichannel back-to-school promotion.

Working with digital marketing provider HelloWorld, Belk allowed customers to both submit and vote on “looks” such as dorm room, game day and night out, created with Belk merchandise.
Neiman Marcus makes mobile shopping a snap

Dallas – Shopping is becoming more of a snap than ever for mobile-savvy customers at Neiman Marcus.

The tony department store chain is partnering with visual search technology provider Slyce Inc. to expand the “Snap. Find. Shop” feature available in the retailer’s mobile app.
Macy’s links millennials to indie designers

New York - Macy’s Inc. is reaching out to fashion-minded millennials by providing an online link to up-and-coming independent designers.

The retailer is entering a new collaboration with online fashion technology start-up company Nineteenth Amendment on Macys.com.
Survey: Back-to-school retailers should learn customer service

Cincinnati – Retailers seeking to attract back-to-school shoppers should make sure they are well schooled in the ins and outs of providing good customer service.

A new LoyaltyOne, Verde Group survey of 2,500 U.S. consumers shows that efficient service, more than price or product availability, drives store loyalty and repeat purchases for shoppers with kids younger than 18 at mass merchandise stores such as Walmart, Target and Staples.
Start-up shopping site rewards social influencers

Charlotte, N.C. – How do social influencers discover the latest hot retailers and products?

Yuno, a new social shopping e-commerce site, allows users to discover and shop for more than 70 million products, curates fashion, lifestyle, sports and technology products from retailers including Macy's, Best Buy, Nieman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue and Foot Locker.
Tech Bytes: Three Business Reasons to Track Ethical Sourcing

Retailers invest in a variety of systems to track a wide range of supply chain and sourcing activities, but often overlook the need for technology to track ethical sourcing. Ethical sourcing refers to ensuring that products retailers sell do not involve exploitation or mistreatment of workers, unsafe facilities or production processes, stolen or counterfeit goods, or environmental hazards.
Site Search Driving Omnichannel Sales

Online shopping is driving more sales and foot traffic in brick-and-mortar stores than ever before. In fact, Deloitte expects digital interactions will influence 64 cents of every dollar spent in retail stores by the end of 2015 – that’s $2.2 trillion worth of in-store sales that are aided by e-commerce.
Fast-casual chain names DineEquity exec as CFO

Jackson, Miss. -- The fast-growing Newk’s Eatery named Robert Nygren as CFO.

Nygren comes to Newk’s with nearly two decades of financial management experience. He most recently served as VP of finance for DineEquity, the world’s largest full-service restaurant company, overseeing financial planning, analytics and strategy for Applebee’s and IHOP in conjunction with the brands’ operational and development objectives.