News

At a press conference this week, the National Retail Federation called for widespread adoption of chip-and-PIN payment card technology by U.S. retailers and their partners.

“The chip validates that it’s the real card,” said Tom Litchford, VP retail technologies for NRF. “The PIN provides two levels of validation.”

Meijer has upgraded its fashion offering to challenge national retailers in the apparel and accessories space.

The Grand Rapids, Mich.-based retailer touts itself as a pioneer of the one-stop shopping concept, but it said in a release that it is best known for its produce and meat departments. The company, therefore, has taken steps to upgrade its fashion offerings, not only by stocking a variety of on-trend merchandise, but also creating a dedicated fashion website and launching a social media initiative to promote their upgraded apparel and accessories category.

ComScore elevated president Serge Matta to the role of CEO as the digital measurement firm reported recorded fourth-quarter and full-year results.

Matta fills the position occupied by Dr. Magid Abraham who along with Gian Fulgoni co-founded the company. Abraham will relinquish the CEO role and serve as executive chairman of the board of directors, assuming a position currently held by Fulgoni who will become chairman emeritus.

With usage of electronic cigarettes on the rise, a new study by e-cig manufacturer Mistic contends the majority of Americans are not opposed to second hand vapor.
 

Domo, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) venture, has named Matt Belkin as chief strategic solutions officer and SVP of consulting.

In this role, Belkin will oversee the development of Domo's consulting organization and be responsible for developing “packaged solutions and best practices.”

Most recently, Belkin was VP of customer strategy at Adobe Systems' digital marketing division, which he joined from Omniture. He was part of the team there that helped grow the company's revenue from $20 million in 2004 to more than $1 billion in 2013.

Kohl’s has teamed up with actress Katie Holmes to confront the “pink elephant in the room” — breast cancer — in a new awareness-raising initiative. Kohl’s will donate up to $1 million to Susan G. Komen to help support the cause.

Eco Depot has signed a letter of intent with Water Technology Development to distribute a new portable water purification device called the WaterGizzi. Eco Depot plans to market the product as part of its eco-friendly product line, which also includes the Click and Pour and the recently acquired WaterGeeks filtration brand.

Chicago -- Retail CFOs are feeling more confident about the state of the consumer, forecast a 5.1% increase in total sales and a 4.8% increase in same-store sales this year, according to a new BDO USA survey. The finding marks a significant increase from the number expressing similar sentiments last year.

In the study,  a majority (63%) of CFOs indicate that they include online sales in their comparable sales projections, suggesting that some of this expected growth and optimism may be linked to the exploding popularity of e-commerce.

Cincinnati -- The Kroger Co. announced it has purchased the assets of YOU Technology Brand Services, the Silicon Valley-based provider of digital coupons and promotions. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Washington, D.C. -- Import volume at the nation’s major retail container ports is expected to drop 8.4% in February from the same time last year as the shipping cycle reaches its slowest month of the year, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.