Data & Analytics

Sydney, Australia – Australian apparel retailer General Pants is rolling out interactive kiosks fusing music, fashion and social media to create a shopping experience to guide, inform and entertain consumers via Apple iPad device displays. The launch is the result of more than six months of development to create an omni-channel platform that merges the online and offline shopping experience.

San Francisco -- Retail in the coming year will be more streamlined and integrated with online experiences, according to predictions from POS software provider Revel Systems.

In 2014, Revel Systems predicts the following industry advancements will begin to take shape:

The recession took a major toll on the retail real estate sector but, despite waffling consumer confidence, the sector continues to improve. Retail now accounts for 19% of total U.S. investment volume year-to-date 2013.

Retail experts from Jones Lang LaSalle predict four key forces that will drive an increase in the retail transaction market during 2014:

1. Strengthening Fundamentals  

Amazon.com is the most popular U.S. online retail site when it comes to having Web content shared on Pinterest in the run up to Christmas 2013.

In a study of 10 top US retail sites, images and pages from Amazon.com are being shared most frequently on Pinterest, with Walmart and Apple taking second and third positions, respectively. According to a study conducted by digital marketing software and services specialist Searchmetrics, content from Amazon.com currently generates 16,360 pins per week, Walmart generates 5,778 pins per week and Apple generates 3,871.

The Coca-Cola Company’s board of directors has named Ed Steinike as a senior VP and Robert J. Jordan Jr. as a VP. Jordan will succeed William D. Hawkins III as general tax counsel, who announced his intention to retire in March 2014 after 15 years of service with the company.

So far 20 states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws permitting and regulating the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. Colorado and Washington have gone further and legalized the recreational use of marijuana. Moreover, Americans’ tolerance for the legalization of marijuana is increasing. An October 2013 Gallup poll showed that 58% of Americans favor legalizing marijuana.

What does this trend mean for retailers, especially those operating in multiple states? The answer is complex, as the law is evolving.

Lululemon’s increases in net revenue, gross profit and comparable-store sales beat expectations, but shares slid after the company said it anticipates flat comparable-store sales in the fourth quarter.

According to reports, shares dropped 10.7% to $61 after the company posted its financial results for the third quarter ended Nov. 3, which saw net revenue increase 20% to $379.9 million from $316.5 million in last year’s third quarter. Comparable-store sales in the quarter increased 5%.

Restoration Hardware co-CEO Carlos Alberini has resigned his post, effective Jan. 31, 2014. He plans to continue serving as a member of the company’s board of directors and will remain a significant shareholder.

Alberini is heading to Los Angeles, where he will take the helm as chairman of the board and CEO of Lucky Brand, effective upon closing of the pending acquisition by Leonard Green & Partners.

Amit Menipaz, general manager of structured data at eBay, and John Inwright, president and CEO of Quality Supply Chain Co-op, the co-op for Wendy’s, have been appointed to the GS1 U.S. board of governors.
 

Men’s Wearhouse reported declining net income during the third quarter of fiscal 2013 even as net sales improved.

Net income dropped about 22%, from $48.8 million in the third quarter of the prior fiscal year to $38.2 million.