Data & Analytics

Nuremberg, Germany – Some observers have suggested the practice of consumers using their mobile devices to check prices at rival retailers while in a store, is on the wane. However, a survey of mobile phone users in 23 countries (including the U.S.) from GfK found 40% compare prices at other retailers while in a store.

Forty percent also contact a friend or family member for advice, while 36% take pictures of products that they might buy.

Deerfield, Ill. – Walgreens customers have a new resource for getting information on medication. Non-profit PatientsLikeMe is working with Walgreens to help make it easier for people to understand how the medications they take may affect them.

Now, consumers researching a medication or filling a prescription on Walgreens.com can access a snapshot that shows how their prescribed medication has impacted other patients on the therapy, including medication side effects, as reported by PatientsLikeMe members.
 

Phoenix – PetSmart Inc. launched an omnichannel campaign around the joys and struggles of “pethood” – or pet parenthood, with a TV commercial during the Feb. 22 Academy Awards telecast. The campaign will include short films and ads shown on TV and online, and include print, digital and social media components.

Target is raising the stakes in the free online shipping game by undercutting not only Walmart but now also Amazon.com.

Target announced it has lowered the threshold for free shipping on online orders to $25, making it among the most competitive among major retailers. Its previous free-shipping minimum was $50, which placed it in the higher end of the spectrum.

Almost 2-in-5 U.S. consumers who are walking the retail aisles with smartphone in hand are comparing prices, according to a GfK survey.

Lingerie retailer Frederick’s of Hollywood is reportedly closing at least 31 of its 93 stores as part of a broader re-engineering effort. 

According to the Wall Street Journal, Great American Group is overseeing liquidation sales at 31 stores, including the flagship location in Los Angeles. The number of stores to be shuttered may rise slightly.

Best Buy is looking to drive growth through innovation by opening a new technology center in the Seattle area this spring.

The company joins a growing array of retailers, including Staples and Sears, that have been opening or expanding offices in Seattle in order to tap into the city’s wealth of tech talent.

By Shah Karim, Saferock

If it hasn't done so already, the consumer experience will undoubtedly include omnichannel shopping, mobile, and social media as part of what consumers do naturally. Based on this inevitable evolution of how customers engage with retailers, here are seven retail “megatrends” which will become reality by 2020.

The White House recently hosted a daylong Summit on Cybersecurity and Consumer Protection at Stanford University. Speakers ranged from President Barack Obama to Apple CEO Tim Cook to Walgreens president Alex Gourlay). Here are a few takeaways.

Retailers Recognize Chip and PIN

New York -- Rebecca Minkoff’s New York flagship combines advanced technology with the designer’s fashion-forward apparel and accessories to create a highly engaging and immersive shopping experience — one that’s right in sync with the brand’s omnichannel- and mobile-savvy customer base. It’s also in sync with the ethos of the designer herself, who has entered the wearable tech market, with a bracelet that alerts the wearer to calls and texts, and a cuff that charges mobile device