News

Retail Forecast 2016
How will retailers fare in 2016? Very well, according to experienced market watchers.

“We expect core retail sales to grow 5.3% in 2016,” says Scott Hoyt, senior director of consumer economics for Moody’s Analytics, a research firm based in West Chester, Pennsylvania. (Core retail sales exclude volatile revenues from auto sales and gas stations.) That is notably faster than the 4.2% rate anticipated when 2015 sales are finally tallied. The 2015 experience was, again, slightly better than the 3.9% growth of 2014.
C-Suite Execs to Watch in 2016
For the retailing industry, 2015 was another year of seismic shifts as merchants continued to keep pace with the evolving digital landscape. It was also a busy year of executive comings and goings. Here is my pick of industry executives — all new to their positions — to keep an eye on in 2016.

Hhgregg has holiday sales disaster

Same-store sales declined 11% at Hhgregg during the company’s third quarter ended Dec. 31 with the retailer of appliances, electronics and furniture citing competitive pressures as the source of weakness.
Bon-Ton repeats promotion where everyone wins

The Bon-Ton Stores is back with a popular promotion that increases store traffic, generates sales, saves customers money and benefits the communities where it operates 270 department stores.
Lowe’s knows there’s no place like home

On the heels of adding new security features to its Iris connected home device, Lowe’s is further expanding its presence in the connected home market.
Online retailers have happy New Year

All was not quiet on New Year’s Day for online retailers and their customers.

According to Verizon Retail Index data, broadband traffic attributed to e-commerce shopping activity reached new heights over the New Year’s holiday weekend (Jan. 1-3). E-commerce traffic posted highs of 28%, 32% and 36% respectively above average daily levels on those three days – a similar pattern to the prior year. Notably, Sunday posted the highest activity of the season to date which is consistent with a trend identified by Verizon during the 2014 season.
Tourneau gets with the times

For luxury watch retailer Tourneau, brick-and-mortar historically took precedence over online operations.

The New York-based retailer is known for having long-tenured associates with deep knowledge. This emphasis on the in-store experience often left digital commerce overlooked among the company’s strategic priorities.

However, recognizing that the modern consumer now expects a seamlessly blended experience that crosses the physical and digital channels, Tourneau is entering the omnichannel world with help from Demandware.
Marsh Supermarkets makes it personal

Marsh Supermarkets, a regional grocer with 73 stores in Indiana and Ohio, needs to know its customers especially well to compete with larger supermarket chains.

To that end, Indianapolis-based Marsh is partnering with targeted marketing software vendor inStream to provide personalized, targeted offers on the front of consumer receipts. InStream drives customer engagement and sales via personalized targeting based on customer-specific purchase data.
Children’s Place listened to shareholders, makes changes

Following a contentious exchange with a large shareholder in 2015, Children’s Place is changing a key provision of its bylaws that allows investors to nominate directors and allowing a vote on several other measures shareholders identified as concerns.
Pep Boys hears the voice of Instagram users

“Listening” on a visual platform such as Instagram might seem like an oxymoron, but there is no paradox in Pep Boys’ success in this endeavor.
Amazon reports happy holiday for sellers

Some of the details are vague, but businesses and individuals selling items via Amazon.com experienced a generally successful holiday season.

According to figures released by Amazon, more than 23 million items were ordered worldwide from sellers on Amazon on Cyber Monday, a more than 40% increase year-over-year. Use of the Amazon Sponsored Products targeted advertising service by sellers grew more than 100%year-over-year worldwide. Clicks on Sponsored Products in the U.S. grew by more than 200% from the previous holiday season.
KKR makes Midwestern retail move

Global investment firm KKR’s name is usually associated with large deals, but that’s not the case with it latest acquisition of a small Midwestern chain that looks a lot like Tractor Supply.