Data & Analytics

Washington, D.C. - More Americans this year are expected to put their tax returns in the bank. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF)’s Tax Returns Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics, 46% of those expecting a refund this year will put their money into savings, up from 44% last year and the highest percent in the survey’s history.

Laguna Beach, Calif. – The new Wonder e-gift card app from Wonder Technologies Inc. is available free in the iTunes App store. Wonder allows consumers to instantly deliver e-gifts from participating retailers to anyone with an email address or mobile phone number.

Signet Jewelers is in the process of acquiring all issued and outstanding stock of Zale for $21 per share in cash consideration. The transaction brings together two leading jewelry retailers with six brands available across three countries with combined sales of $6.2 billion.

New York -- Shopzilla Inc. has acquired Connexity, a demand-side platform. Shopzilla manages online shopping brands in the United States and Europe, such as Bizrate, Beso, Shopzilla, Retrevo, TaDa, PrixMoinsCher, and SparDeinGeld, as well as a series of B2B businesses.

Shopzilla said it would link Connexity’s programmatic media-buying platform to its Aisle A division, which specializes in audience-buying.  

A highly fragmented market and inconsistent customer demand — thanks, in large part, to inclement weather — were not enough to dampen Lumber Liquidators’ results in the fourth quarter.

The company achieved record highs for net sales and operating margin and continues to gain further traction in its key, multi-year strategic initiatives.

For the quarter, net income increased 50.6% to $20.8 million, from $13.8 million in the fourth quarter of the prior year.

New York -- Walgreens will provide a first-hand look at its net zero-energy store during Chain Store Age’s 50th annual SPECS Conference, which will be held March 9 -12, in Grapevine, Texas.  

Emeryville. Calif. - Jamba Juice Company has unveiled its new Jamba Insider Rewards customer loyalty program in stores nationwide. Now, typing a phone number entry on a touch-screen allows Jamba Juice customers to earn rewards, personalized offers, and free products without the need to carry a rewards card at every point of sale.   

With approximately 1.5 billion smartphones currently in use today, it is safe to say mobile is radically changing consumer retail behavior. To maximize in-store sales opportunities and minimize hurdles to purchase, retailers must change their approach to reach a new generation of customers steeped in a mobile lifestyle.

But how should retailers best interact with their customers in this new age of mobile? A new innovation from Apple could be one answer: iBeacon.