Omnichannel

The CEO of HSN says that for the first time ever, more than half of sales at HSN came from digital channels.

But onine sales did not make up for heavy discounting, and the companyposted profit and revenue declines.The company reported that for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, net sales decreased 2% and adjusted EBITDA decreased 3%.Adjusted EPS was $1.15 compared to $1.22 in the prior year.

Whole Foods Market has been offering deliveries via Instacart in select markets for about a year, but reportedly is significantly extending the scope of the deal.

According to Re/code, Whole Foods has at least in principle made an unspecified investment in Instacart. Whole Foods has also reportedly signed a five-year deal making Instacart its exclusive perishables delivery provider.

Wakefern Food Corp. has named executive Cheryl Williams as its new CIO and VP of the computer information services division.

SAP has named Achim Schneider as global head of its Retail Industry Business Unit.

Schneider will be responsible for the retail industry footprint at SAP and will report directly to Lori Mitchell-Keller, global general manager of consumer industries.

In his new role, Schneider leads retail industry activities at SAP and will oversee cloud and on-premise technology solutions designed for use by retailers.

Specialty jewelry retailer Pandora found that combining a leading-edge marketing technique with a tried-and-true advertising format paid dividends during the recent holiday season.

From November 2015 – January 2016, Pandora leveraged the mobile network from location-based marketing provider Outfront Mediato drive traffic to four Miami-area stores. Pandora’s omnichannel approach included nine billboards in Miami, as well as a geo-fencing area that consisted of a five-mile radius around nine local out-of-home assets owned by Outfront Media.

Golf aficionados are notoriously particular about their equipment, and most interested in the recommendations of fellow duffers when making product selections.

Vertical golf retailer TaylorMade is leveraging the Needle Advocate Marketing Cloud to help bring online customers in contact with brand advocates to provide highly targeted content and information. Advocate Marketing Cloud eases the collaboration process for retailers and advocates.

Visa has been busy adding new retailers to its Visa Checkout online payment service, and now is rewarding them with an upgraded offering.

In April 2016, Visa will be releasing a set of new enhancements designed to improve both the consumer interface and ability for retailers to customize and integrate the service. Most features will be automatically available to retailers.