Omnichannel

Gordmans Stores plans to open a new store next month in its hometown of Omaha in April, the first of five new units the apparel and home décor retailer has planned for the year.

More powerful than a smartphone and more portable than a laptop, tablet computers offer retail design and construction professionals some unique opportunities.

In a session at Chain Store Age’s SPECS 2016 conference at Hilton Anatole in Dallas, March 13-15, “Tablets Unlocked,” Bart Waldeck, CMO and senior VP of product strategy for Tango, identified the top five opportunities tablets offer the store development process.

Storytelling is an intrinsic part of our daily lives. Movies, books, music, news, religion and art are all imbued with the stories we tell each other–and the stories we tell ourselves.

Even the spaces and places that we work, shop, eat and play are “speaking” to us – and through us – defining our dreams and desires, informing our values, and even shaping the contours of our hidden prejudices and deepest fears.

RSR has been tracking retailers' e-commerce strategies for more than five years. During that time we’ve seen interest in a major platform refresh, the introduction of mobile and social as e-commerce considerations, as well as convergence – where retailers increasingly view mobile and other non-commerce online activities in the context of their overall "digital" strategy, with their e-commerce platform as the centerpiece.

A new tenant has been added to the lineup at American Dream, the mega retail and entertainment destination under construction in East Rutherford, New Jersey: Century 21.

The off-pricer will open a nearly 60,000 sq. ft. location at the long-delayed center, which when completed will boost such attractions as an indoor water park, a Lego Discovery Center, a 16-story indoor ski and snow park, a miniature golf course — and more than 450 retail stores.

Technology-themed sessions were in abundance at Chain Store Age’s 52nd annual SPECS conference, which was held March 13-15 at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas.

The conference focuses on store planning/design, equipment, construction and facility services, and IT is slowly but surely becoming a much bigger part of this end of the retail enterprise.

Technology-themed sessions were in abundance at Chain Store Age’s 52nd annual SPECS conference, which was held March 13-15 at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas. The conference focuses on store planning/design, equipment, construction and facility services, and IT is slowly but surely becoming a much bigger part of this end of the retail enterprise.

Here are three technology-related learnings from the conference.

Buildings get smart

Finish Line has hired a high power technology executive to make sure it avoids recent technology implementation challenges in the future while keeping pace with athletic footwear consumers’ desire for an omnichannel experience.