News

Alibaba teams up with Bigcommerce for direct sourcing
San Francisco – Alibaba.com has collaborated with e-commerce platform to Bigcommerce deliver an integrated shopping experience for sourcing products from Alibaba.com’s network of Chinese wholesale suppliers. The Alibaba.com Wholesale solution is immediately available to Bigcommerce’s 70,000 stores, and online merchants can now access and purchase a collection of more than 30,000 products from about 300 of Alibaba.com’s Gold Suppliers in China with scope to expand to more than three million products from thousands of Gold Suppliers.
Ikea targets veggie lovers with meatless meatballs
Food has always been an important part of the shopping experience at Ikea, and the retailer is doubling down on that strategy by unveiling a new menu.

Ikea announced it will be adding more nutritious and sustainable food options to its restaurants, bistros near the checkout, Swedish food markets and co-worker restaurants. The new food strategy highlights how important food is to the chain.

Study: Customer loyalty program enrollments at all-time high

New York -- Enrollment levels in consumer loyalty programs have reached an all-time according to the 2015 Bond Brand Loyalty Report. The fifth annual study shows consumers overwhelmingly agree that loyalty programs are worth the effort.
Walmart wage hikes under way in many states

Walmart is beginning to raise wages for workers in several states as part of its employee initiative for fiscal 2015.
Beacons to get a boost from tech partnership

ShopperTrak is teaming up with a shopping app called Shopkick to enhance the value proposition retailers offer to their customers in-store.

ShopperTrak, a global provider of consumer behavior insights and location-based analytics, and Shopkick is the most widely used real-world shopping app. Their partnership aims to leverage the market leadership and experience of both companies to deliver superior in-store experiences and rewards for shoppers, while also providing the retail community with an analytics tool to optimize the shopper’s experience in the store.
Staples gets in to the 'Shark Tank' for small business

Staples is getting into the “Shark Tank” to attract more small business owners to its stores by teaming up with ABC’s popular TV show.

The retailer will sponsor debut products from inventors on ABC’s “Shark Tank” television show and on Staples.com and in select Staples stores. The successful entrepreneurs behind the products will be featured during three episodes of ABC’s “Shark Tank” starting April 10.
RSR Research: Retailers focus heavily on customer behavior

Walnut Creek, Calif. – Retailers are taking advantage of volumes of Big Data and advanced analytical technology to uncover deep insights on customer behavior. However, according to a new study from RSR Research, they may be focusing on customer behavior to an extent they overlook other valuable insights.
Uniqlo to open D.C., Denver, Seattle stores

Japanese retailer Uniqlo's U.S. expansion is picking up speed as the company prepares to open its first-ever stores in the Seattle, Denver and Washington, D.C.
Report: Google to take on Amazon Home Services

Mountain View, Calif. – Google is reportedly planning to launch a service that will compete with Amazon Home Services later this spring. According to BuzzFeed, Google will integrate a new product into its core search functionality that will directly connect users searching for service providers such as plumbers and electricians to the providers.
Digital sales up 35.1% at Hudson's Bay Company

A big jump in digital sales and the integration of Saks Fifth Avenue helped Hudson’s Bay Co. post a larger increase in profit in the fourth quarter.