Data & Analytics

Consumers are changing the way they browse and shop for goods using mobile devices.

According to the State of Retailing Online 2016 study from Forrester Research, Shop.org and Bizrate Insights, growing use of smartphones by consumers, a shift in investments by technology companies and continued optimization strategies from retailers has landed smartphones on top as a driver of mobile sales and traffic for retail companies.

Costco Wholesale Corporation on Wednesday reported net sales of $12.5 billion for the month of December, which includes the five weeks ended Jan. 3, 2016, an increase of 3%.

For the 18 weeks ended Jan. 3, 2016, the company reported net sales of $41.7 billion, an increase of 2%.

Comparable sales across Costco's U.S. network were up 3% across both time frames.

Having a view into store activities can mean many things, but in a very literal sense being able to see what’s happening in the store is crucial for security and risk management.

For Atlanta-based, 24-store specialty golf retailer PGA Tour Superstore, getting a better store-level view has meant starting to upgrade a legacy analog video management system (VMS) to a modern IP-based VMS.

Children’s Place did the most shareholder friendly thing possible just days after it announced a slate of other shareholder friendly measures.

Consumers are changing the way they browse and shop for goods using mobile devices.

According to the State of Retailing Online 2016 study from Forrester Research, Shop.org and Bizrate Insights, growing use of smartphones by consumers, a shift in investments by technology companies and continued optimization strategies from retailers has landed smartphones on top as a driver of mobile sales and traffic for retail companies.

Leading department store operator Hudson’s Bay Company confirmed months of speculation and agreed to pay what appears to be a modest sum to acquire online luxury retailer Gilt Groupe.

Hudson’s Bay, which operates 470 department stores including Saks Fifth Avenue and the Off 5th discount format, said it agreed to pay $250 million for Gilt in a deal that will add $500 million to 2016, $40 million in adjusted operating profit by 2017 and countless synergies to leverage the combined companies’ infrastructure and customer databases.

Less than 12 hours after Macy’s shared bleak holiday results, J.C. Penney said enhanced digital capabilities helped it to produce strong holiday season same store sales growth which allowed the company to reaffirm its full year profit forecast.

The numbers are in and one specific device clearly served as a major catalyst for increased e-commerce sales during the 2015 holiday season.

According to the MarketLive 2015 Holiday Flash Report, smartphone revenue during the just-completed holiday season (Nov. 23, 2015 – Jan. 3, 2016) increased 50%. Overall e-commerce revenue grew 8% during that period.