News

New player joins mobile payment ranks
Another company is offering in-app mobile purchase functionality, but this time it’s not a retailer or a technology provider.

U.S. bank Capital One is partnering with MasterCard and Visa to offer contactless mobile payment capability in its Capital One Wallet app. Leveraging the MasterCard Digital Enablement Service (MDES) and Visa Token Service (VTS) platforms, Capital One will use NFC-enabled Android phones to transmit a secure payment token to the point-of-sale.
Hackers hit southeastern thrift store chain
The latest retail data breach demonstrates that hackers will victimize whoever is vulnerable.

America’s Thrift Stores, an Alabama-based, 18-store for-profit chain that sells donated items and then contributes a significant portion of the profit to local charities, has been breached, Hackers used malware to compromise the systems of a third-party service provider, which gave them access to the America’s Thrift Stores network.

Visa keeps up with cyberdangers

There seems to be a new cyber threat every day, and Visa Inc. is doing its best to stay up to date.

Visa and FireEye Inc. have launched a new service for the payments industry called Visa Threat Intelligence, Powered by FireEye. This service will deliver real-time threat information on cyberattacks to merchants and issuers.
ICSC predicts a longer holiday shopping season

More Americans are planning holiday-related purchases this year than in 2014, and those who plan to shop will spend more over a longer period of time, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers.
Sally Beauty enters pricing zone

Pricing can be a mysterious and dimly lit dimension for many retailers.

Sally Beauty Supply LLC is emerging from the pricing twilight and entering the zone of effectively targeted price strategy in a new partnership with Revionics. The specialty beauty chain will deploy Revionics Price Optimization solution, which includes price management, strategic price simulation and optimization.
Food Lion connects with kids through grocery bags

Food Lion has come up with an artistic way to connect with the communities it serves and feed the hungry at the same time.

The retailer is inviting kids ages 5-14 to participate in its Food Lion Feeds "Summers Without Hunger" Design-a-Reusable-Bag Contest. The winning design will be featured on next year's Food Lion Feeds reusable bag, which will be sold in more than 1,100 stores in June. The campaign is anticipated to help provide another 1 million meals to families and children in need.
Instacart moves into ingredients

Instacart is taking a step beyond partnering with specific retailers to provide same-day grocery deliveries.

The online delivery platform is partnering with food-focused social network Allrecipes to deliver fresh ingredients from Allrecipes’ highest-rated, most popular recipes on-demand. With the click of a button, consumers can add all necessary ingredients from Allrecipes meals and have them delivered straight to their doorstep in as little as one hour.
Shoe Carnival adds new real estate expertise

Shoe Carnival has picked a new executive for a key role in its omnichannel-oriented growth strategy which could involve accelerated expansion of a small format.

The retailer has named Jeff Fink as its senior vice president of real estate. Fink will oversee the Company’s store site selection and lease administration functions.
Why CEOs are Increasingly Taking Ownership of the Consumer Experience

In a relatively short space of time, the retail industry has been turned on its head. Not that long ago, retailers would decide which goods they would stock, how much they would price each item, and which locations would sell which goods. Today, consumers are calling the shots. The smartphone has become like a store in a pocket and consumers use them to quickly find the exact item they want and compare prices to get the best deal. Depending on what is more convenient for them, they can arrange for home delivery or click-and-collect.
This return is on PayPal

PayPal is helping U.S. customers and retailers with a new shipping perk.

The payment services platform is expanding Return Shipping on Us, a service that refunds return shipping costs to consumers on eligible online purchases, to the U.S.