Store Systems

London, U.K. -- Nearly three-quarters of online retailers (74%) miss out on sales by promoting irrelevant items to online shoppers. According to new research from OrderDynamics, as retailers prepare for the crucial holiday shopping season, many could be driving customers away by promoting irrelevant products, failing to build customer relationships through intelligent follow-up, and ignoring consumer preferences on end-to-end order tracking.  

New York –- Specialty retailer Rebecca Minkoff has opened a “connected store” powered by EBay technology in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City, and will open connected stores in San Francisco Nov. 19 and in Los Angeles in 2015, respectively. Using EBay technology, the stores include mirrored displays with touchscreen video content that let customers request associate assistance or order drinks.  

Brad Fick, Direct Source   Mobile devices are playing an increasingly important role in the world of retail – and it's not just mobile shopping.  

Minneapolis -- Promising an “Amazon-like experience” in its stores, Target Corp. has acquired a Pittsburgh technology firm that says its software platform brings "an Amazon-like shopping experience" to in-store customers.   Target and Powered Analytics co-founder Collin Otis have confirmed the deal but have not disclosed the terms. The firm will reported remain headquartered in Pittsburgh.  

Grapevine, Texas –- GameStop is introducing the GameStop Holiday Hub. a seamless online experience allowing customers to check out gift guides, find deals, determine trade-in values, learn about layaway options, and other shopper-friendly tools such as in-store pickup of online orders.  

San Mateo, Calif. -– 11 Main Inc., the U.S. online shopping platform operated by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Inc., has launched a mobile app optimized for iPhone, iPod Touch and Android, with an iPad version coming later in the year. The mobile applications are optimized for each platform and offer 11 Main’s online shopping experience.   

Bentonville, Ark. –- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. reportedly sent a memo to marketing managers on Oct. 2 saying that sales need to improve for chilled and fresh items in stores, including dairy, meat and produce. 

 

According to the New York Times, the memo cited customer complaints about expired items, as well as the need for less backup inventory and the rotation of perishable items.

 

Regional discounter Shopko is employing an unconventional strategy concerning Thanksgiving store hours.