News

New York -- Shopzilla has changed its name to Connexity to highlight its recent transformation from comparison shopping to technology driven marketing solutions.

According to the company, its new solutions enable retailers and brands to understand their consumers better, acquire new customers at a lower cost and increase sales based on retail signals that it provides.

By Gary Lee, InReality

King of Prussia, Pa. – Online retailers are prioritizing immediate investments in customer-facing tactics such as price, marketing and customer service over strategic infrastructure for the 2014 holiday season. According to the 2014 Holiday Retail Audit, a U.S. survey of more than 1,000 ecommerce and marketing professionals from retailers with revenues of $5 million to $250 million conducted by EBay Enterprise, retailers identified a renewed focus in marketing efforts.

New York -- Nearly three-quarters (74%) of U.S. households plan to spend money on Halloween-related items, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) Halloween Consumer Spending Survey. The total for Halloween-related spending is expected to be approximately $11.3 billion in 2014.

Fort Worth, Texas – A class-action settlement RadioShack Corp. reached with consumers that offered them $10 vouchers as compensation for printing their credit and debit card expiration dates on receipts has reportedly been overturned by the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago. According to Reuters, a panel of three federal judges said the total $1 million settlement is too small considering the amount of legal fees that must be paid.

Thorofare, N.J. -- Checkpoint Systems has been selected by global retailing giant Inditex Group to implement radio frequency identification (RFID) technology into its distribution centers.

Inditex’s RFID implementation project was recently unveiled by chairman and CEO Pablo Isla at the company’s annual general meeting.

New York – Tiffany &Co. plans to offer two series of senior notes, one due in 2024 and one due in 20144, for a total of $500 million. The initial purchasers of the notes are expected to be Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc., Goldman, Sachs & Co., BNY Mellon Capital Markets LLC, J.P. Morgan and Mizuho Securities.

Pleasanton, Calif. – Safeway Inc. is offering to pay cash consent fees to holders of three series of senior notes due in 2017, 2018 and 2019. Note holders who accept the fees would release Safeway of the obligation to repurchase the notes at 1% interest when its expected fourth quarter merger with Albertson’s LLC occurs.

McLean, Va. - Digital identity solution provider ID.me has unveiled its new retail rewards marketplace, which helps retailers hyper-target influencers and consumer segments with exclusive offers that are protected from fraud. The new product extends ID.me’s coverage from niche affinity groups like the military and students to all consumers.

Fort Worth, Texas – Beleaguered consumer electronics chain RadioShack Corp. says it is in talks with an unidentified “major vendor” about modifying a commercial agreement in a way that could benefit a financial restructuring. RadioShack announced the ongoing discussions in a Sept. 22 regulatory filing.