Omnichannel

Seattle – Amazon.com is offering a new service, called Kindle Unlimited, aimed at consumers who do heavy book reading and/or listening. The service will work similar to Netflix in that users will pay a base monthly fee for unlimited access to a catalogue of content. Instead of movies and TV shows, however, Kindle Unlimited gives Kindle users access to more than 600,000 Kindle books (and thousands of Audible audiobooks) for a flat monthly rate of $9.99 a month.

New York -- Italian luxury brand Fendi has opened a pop-up, called #fendisoho in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood. The 630-sq.-ft. store will be open until the end of the year.

The merchandise will rotate on a monthly basis, with different themes that reflect the breadth of the brand’s offerings. The first collection is devoted to accessories, or what Fendi calls “must-have mini-icons.”

By Ben Pivar, Senior VP, Retail Leader, North America, Capgemini

Showrooming may not be as concerning as many traditional retailers once thought. In fact, retailers who embrace clienteling and other strategies can leverage showrooming as an element of the overall all-channel experience for their customers. Through the use of new technologies as well as in-store and online strategies, many of those retailers who have tested clienteling have experienced a lift in customer conversion.

Target is leaving no digital stone unturned this year as its looks engage with shoppers in the lucrative back-to-college market.

Bentonville, Ark. – Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has reportedly invested $103 million in its Indian operations with the goals of expanding its wholesale store count and increasing its online presence there. According to the Wall Street Journal, Wal-Mart intends to increase wholesale store base in India from the current 20 to 70 in the next five years.

Melville, N.Y. – EconsumerServices, an online mediator between unsatisfied customers and e-commerce retailers, has signed JoTo PR as its public relations agency. JoTo PR will assist EConsumerServices in reaching its mass market of online consumers and making industry opinion leaders and government officials aware of the issue of fraud-related chargebacks.

New York – L’Oreal cosmetics brand Urban Decay has partnered with Compare Metrics to launch its online product discovery solution. The Compare Metrics solution for Urban Decay includes content curation, adaptive navigation and shopping scenarios. 

Facebook is testing a new “buy” button designed to help businesses drive sales through Facebook in News Feed and on Pages. With this feature, people on desktop or mobile can click the “Buy” call-to-action button on ads and page posts to purchase a product directly from a business, without leaving Facebook.