News

Party City buys franchise stores
Party City Holdco Inc. is increasing its corporate-owned store count. The company has entered into an agreement to acquire a master franchise group representing 18 franchise stores in North Carolina and South Carolina for a purchase price of $31 million. Prior to the acquisition, the company’s retail operations included 765 company-owned Party City stores and 164 franchise stores.
Two states accounted for nearly 30% of grocery store openings last year
The Lone Star State and Golden State are ripe areas for grocery store expansion. In 2016, more than 440 grocery stores opened in the United States, adding 18.8 million sq. ft. of space. And 27% of those stores opened in two states: Texas and California. That’s according to JLL’s latest Grocery Tracker JLL’s latest Grocery explores four trends transforming the grocery shopping sector.

DHL expands its breadth to accommodate omnichannel retailers

DHL is helping high-volume retailers speed up “the last mile” of their omnichannel shopping experience. DHL eCommerce, a division of logistics company Deutsche Post DHL Group, is expanding the functionality of its fulfillment centers in Columbus, Ohio, and Riverside, California. Specifically, the logistics company is investing in storage and mechanization to support the growing needs of its U.S.-based e-commerce retail partners that ship between 300 and 15,000 orders per day. They will also manage both B2C and B2B transactions.
The Science Behind Successful Online Gifting & What To Avoid To Protect Your Brand

People love to give gifts.
Discounter on hunt for new chief merchandiser

The chief merchandising officer of Dollar General Corp. is retiring. The retailer announced that James “Jim” W. Thorpe, executive VP and chief merchandising officer, will retire from Dollar General effective April 15, 2017. Dollar General said it has started a search for a successor and will consider both internal and external candidates for the job.
Visa lets customers pay — with sunglasses

The payment company hopes its newest wearables concept will have a bright future. Visa unveiled a prototype for payment-enabled sunglasses on Monday, March 13, simultaneously at the South by Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas, and the Quiksilver Pro and Roxy Pro surf competitions in Gold Coast, Australia, according to CNBC.
Home decor brand bolsters offering through predictive analytics

With increased competition in the home furnishings category heats up, Pier 1 Imports wants to feature better assortments and pricing decisions to attract and retain shoppers. The retailer is adopting a new predictive analytics solution from First Insight, which is designed to help it make quicker and more accurate design, buying and pricing decisions, as well as evaluate opportunities for new product launches.
Report: Amazon set to offer Chinese sellers air cargo shipment option

Amazon is making its next global logistics move. The online retailer plans to enable its Chinese sellers to fly their goods internationally as air cargo, according to MarketWatch.
Survey: Mobile wallet adoption has flatlined

Mobile wallet usage in the United States remains small, and shows no signs of increasing anytime soon. This was according to “PYMNTS/InfoScout Mobile Payment Adoption,” a new report from PYMNTS.com. The survey, which was conducted in March 2017 among more than 7,655 consumers, said less than one in 20 consumers who have one of the main mobile wallets (Apple Pay, Sam-sung Pay, and Android Pay) use it regularly.
Penney losing key executive to Hershey

The chief marketing officer of J.C. Penney is leaving the company after two years on the job. Mary Beth West is leaving the department store retailer on March 31 to become senior VP and chief growth officer of the Hershey Co. She will join Hershey on May 1. West joined Penney in April 2015 after serving on the company’s board of directors for 10 years.