Omnichannel

The Oculus Rift virtual reality (VR) headset is slowly gaining popularity with retailers as a customer engagement tool, and an industry vendor is hoping to capitalize on the trend.

Location-based mobile platform Retale is releasing Retale Virtual Reality (VR) for Oculus Rift this year. Designed to be a VR, location-based shopping companion, it will provide an immersive, 3D environment where customers can shop context-based local offers.

Toys “R” Us produced surprisingly strong results, especially online, in what is proving to be a holiday season characterized by mixed results from retailers who have disclosed results.

Kmart is launching a new social media campaign called “Fit in the Fun” that promotes the enjoyment of healthy activities while also engaging members of its Shop Your Way loyalty program.

The program includes a dedicated Fit in the Fun website as well as a #FitintheFun hashtag campaign. In addition, celebrity fitness instructor Jillian Michaels (who has an established relationship with Kmart) offers online tips and also sells branded merchandise on the new site.

Overall retailers had a good 2015 holiday from a digital commerce standpoint, but some patterns changed.

According to the Verizon Retail Index, days that previously had unusual spikes in e-commerce activity, such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday, now show more normal levels of online traffic and purchase activity. Part of this shift is attributed to the widespread availability of high-speed online connections from consumer mobile devices.

In what was arguably one of the strangest holiday season in recent memory – for a variety of reasons – retailers have reported a variety of results ranging from impressive to outright awful.

Irvine, Calif. -- Irvine Company announced a major $150 million reinvestment in Irvine Spectrum Center located in Irvine, California, in the heart of Irvine Spectrum, a mixed-use community that provides a balanced district of retail, office, and living space.

Mall operator General Growth Properties (GGP) is looking to get in touch with customers in a new and very personal way.

GGP has selected Mobiquity to be the provider of beacon-based advertising services for select malls in its U.S. portfolio, including Tysons Galleria (Washington D.C.), Glendale Galleria (Los Angeles), Water Tower Place (Chicago) and Ala Moana Center (Honolulu).

If a “leader” is someone who knows how to take charge, achieve goals and inspire others along the way — even in the most trying of circumstances — then the women featured in this special section are leaders in every sense of the word. They have toiled and proved their mettle — and smarts — in a field that traditionally has not been all that female-friendly: technology.