Data & Analytics

Minneapolis – One way Target is trying to make shopping for school supplies hassle-free is with the School List Assist online hub. Currently in beta, School List Assist offers a curated assortment of the most common K-8 supplies on the list. Parents can purchase the school supplies their kids need and then pick them up in store or have them shipped to their homes.

Greensboro, N.C. – Outlet shopping center operator Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. is launching new sustainability initiatives for its U.S. locations promoting alternative energy usage.

Among these initiatives is a nationwide electric vehicle (EV) charging network system that will be available at 23 Tanger Outlets locations in the U.S.

Tanger has partnered with ChargePoint Networks to develop and maintain the network providing multiple spaces for EV owners with no added cost.

The latest back-to-school promotion from Staples includes deeper discounts, a free trip to California for 50 students, and a new TV advertising campaign.

“This is our 29th back-to-school season at Staples. We’re using or knowledge and expertise to help parents, students and teachers get 110% ready for school with our lowest price guarantee,” Parneros said. “Whether shopping on Staples.com or in our stores with our amazing associates, Staples makes it easy to shop for students in elementary school through college.”

With Amazon.com’s share price approaching $500 on the heels of a highly publicized 20th anniversary promotional event, the struggling Books-A-Million chain announced a deal to go private for a paltry sum.

The Books-A-Million chain was always a distant competitor to the likes of Barnes & Noble and even the now defunct Borders chain. Then along came Amazon.com and Books-A-Million grew more irrelevant. As its sales and profits declined so did its growth prospects in the eyes of investors and its stock price.

Chicago -- Comcast and experience design firm ESI Design have created Studio Xfinity, a retail environment where play, technology, and entertainment combine to create an engaging and fully integrated customer experience.

London - Two e-tailers, Amazon.com and Netflix, are the respective number one and two ranked brands in the U.S., according to the mid-year Brand Index from consumer research firm YouGov. Social video platform is the number three brand in the index, meaning the top three is made up of brands that focus on services delivered through the Internet.

Vancouver, Wash. – Papa Murphy’s Holdings Inc. is minding the store when it comes to marketing. The pizza chain has signed an agreement with marketing execution firm InnerWorkings Inc. to strengthen the impact of its point-of-purchase printed marketing materials and branded merchandise at the its more than 1,400 locations across the U.S.

West Chester, Pa. - QVC will open a state-of-the-art distribution center in Ontario, California. When the new facility begins operation in third quarter 2016, it will serve as a West Coast distribution hub for QVC.

As QVC ramps up operations, the center is expected to employ more than 500 team members by 2018. QVC anticipates hiring approximately 1,000 team members in total by 2020 as the distribution center expands fulfillment to all product categories.