News

Cincinnati - Multichannel grocery shopping is surging across the globe, with the birth of a new child being a primary driver of an increased propensity to buy online. In addition, according to findings of a new study from customer service company dunnhumby, emerging and nascent markets are seeing the most growth with 97% and 89% year-on-year growth, respectively.

Software Paradigms International Group (SPI) has completed another acquisition, nabbing Direct Tech Inc., to bolster the company’s omnichannel service offering.

Direct Tech is a 25 year old company regarded as an industry leader in merchandise and inventory planning software and services for direct-to-consumer retailers.

San Jose, Calif. - Mobile commerce is growing at nearly three times the rate of overall e-commerce. According to a new study from PayPal and Ipsos, from 2013-2016, the multi-country average compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for mobile commerce is projected at 42%, compared to 13% for overall e-commerce (including mobile commerce).

Customer satisfaction with retail is on the decline for the first time in four years, according to a report by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI).

The report says brick-and-mortar retail show weakening or flat customer satisfaction, while Internet retail is up from a year ago.

Ann Arbor, Mich. - Customer satisfaction with retail is down for the first time in four years. According to a report by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), all brick-and-mortar retail categories show weakening or flat customer satisfaction for the fourth quarter of 2014.  Internet retail satisfaction, however, is up from the same quarter in 2013.

As America's obsession with craft beer shows no signs of losing steam, shoppers looking to fill their own growlers with upscale brews may not need to go farther than their local Albertsons supermarket.

The grocery chain is embracing the craft beer trend by adding growler stations to some of its stores. The company recently added a Growler Station Express to a store in Phoenix, Ariz., to satisfy area craft beer fans.

New York -- The consumer electronics and furniture sectors of the retail industry can look forward to growth in 2015, while the apparel sector faces a more mixed outlook. That was the message sounded by CIT Commercial Services executives during a roundtable discussion, "Everyone Looks Good in the Black: Retailers in the Economic Rebound,” part of the CIT Executive Insights series.

During the discussion, each CIT executive offered their views on the top trends they see ahead in various sectors of the retail market:

San Jose, Calif. - Large format Hispanic grocery chain Mi Pueblo Foods is getting personal with customers on the go. Mi Pueblo is using the CLYP mobile marketing automation platform to establish deep consumer engagement, leading to more extensive insight into customers’ shopping behavior and buying patterns.