Data & Analytics

In an era of Big Data, retailers are finding new ways to leverage that information to improve processes and consumer engagement. However, there’s one area where Big Data can have a big impact that companies in the retail space may be missing: real estate.

Mark Ledbetter, global VP retail strategy for SAP, recently spoke with Chain Store Age about the promise of Big Data for retail real estate, and how retailers can best take advantage of it.

Where does retail real estate data originate?

Dick’s Sporting Goods monitors social commentary to boost customer satisfaction

If you really want to know what people think about you, you need to find out what they say behind your back. Historically this has been a tricky proposition, but the advent of social media provides an open forum where companies as well as individuals can check to see what is being said, and whether the commentary is good or bad.

Groupe Dynamite eases global expansion with new tech platform

Having the potential for growth that exceeds the capability of your existing systems is a good problem to have, but it is still a problem. Groupe Dynamite, a fast-fashion women’s apparel retailer based in Montreal, faced that very challenge in early 2010.

Retailers are taking advantage of the mobile channel for an increasing number of activities, including personalized marketing, in-store traffic monitoring and customer recognition. However, while using the mobile channel to create temporary POS stations might be less flashy than some of these other applications, letting customers “surf” between fixed and mobile POS terminals can be an effective means of improving both the customer experience and store profitability.

A Night at the Opera

There is no substitute for a strong brand — whatever the sales channel. That’s the basic underlying premise of Interbrand’s annual “Best Retail Brands” report, which ranks the top 50 North American and international retailers by brand value. It’s a premise worth keeping in mind amid all the online versus offline talk. As Interbrand global CEO Jez Frampton puts it: “In the end, it is the brand, not the footprint, that will endure.”

Leading e-commerce imaging provider Kwikee has launched a new collaboration portal for retailers and suppliers to help improve e-commerce conversion.

Staples has unveiled a new plan called EasyTech Total Support, which provides consumers and small businesses with comprehensive technology services for both their new and old PCs, including upgrades, maintenance and installations.

The service builds on the company’s EasyTech program launched in 2007.

nGage Labs, a leading provider of personalized mobile engagement solutions, has named Kyle Hollaway as chief technology officer.

As CTO, Hollaway will lead the nGage Labs Analytics Innovation team in developing real-time personalization analytics that differentiates the company's mobile customer engagement solutions. He leads an entire team of architects, analysts, modelers, and developers in continuing to create deeper levels of individual customer insights and actionable intelligence.

Nearly two months after Sears set it free, Lands' End has named Steven Rado as SVP, chief marketing officer.

Rado will guide a team of 50 professionals across marketing operations including consumer insights, forecasting and analytics, catalog, digital marketing, customer acquisition, e-commerce, public relations and advertising.

Lifetime Brands, a leading global provider of branded kitchenware, tableware and other products used in the home, is seeing the results of its aggressive growth strategy — which included the acquisition of four businesses during the period — in the first quarter ended March 31.

Consolidated net sales for the quarter were $118.4 million, soaring 20% from $98.7 million for the corresponding period in 2013.