News

Low PC demand plagues Hhgregg
Sluggish traffic and weak performance in the consumer electronics segment led Hhgregg to post a 6.3% drop in same store sales in the third quarter.

The retailer reported a loss in profits from the prior year period and missed Wall Street expectations for both profit and revenue. Hhgregg posted a net loss of $86.9 million, compared to net income of $5.05 million, which was a wider loss than projected by analysts.
Amazon.com 'Primed' for a profitable 2015?
Amazon’s Prime membership seemed to be the golden ticket to stronger sales for the e-commerce giant in the fourth quarter.

Patriots fans outspend Seahawks fans

San Luis Obispo – In what could be a preview of Sunday’s Super Bowl performance, Patriots fans have been outselling Seahawks fans overall in the month of January by 258%. According to data from Shopatron, although in total Patriots fans have spent more, individually their Seahawks counterparts have been more zealous, spending an average of 15% more than Patriots fans on each individual order.
Walmart gets exclusive Harlequin book deal

Walmart shoppers who read Harlequin novels and who also have a fondness for bull riders are in for a treat.
Study: Four-in-10 retailers will use Apple Pay, analytics in 2015

Franklin, Tenn. – About four- in-10 retailers plans on using both Apple Pay (43%) and predictive analytics (42%) by the end of 2015. According to a new study from IHL Group, “Retail 2018 – Retail Transformed,” things are looking up for both store growth and IT spend.
Active flu season lifts Rite Aid in January

A stronger than average flu season helped Rite Aid post an increase in same store sales for January. The company reported a 4.8% increase in same-store sales for the four weeks ended Jan. 24. Rite Aid's January front-end same-store sales increased 2.9%.
Pantry produces Q1 profit

Cary, N.C. – The Pantry Inc. is heading into its pending merger with Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. in a profitable state. During the first quarter of fiscal 2015, The Pantry reported net income of $18.9 million, compared to a net loss of $5.1 million in the same quarter a year earlier.
Can Walmart win Canada where Target lost?

Many U.S. retailers have difficulty being successful in the Great White North of Canada. Now that Target is exiting, can Walmart fill the gap? A new article suggests that it can, if Walmart works at it hard enough.

Financial blog The Motley Fool reports that Walmart can succeed where Target failed.
Gap names ‘customer experience’ chief; eliminates creative director post

San Francisco -- Incoming Gap Inc. CEO Art Peck is wasting no time reshaping the apparel giant. In its latest management shakeup, the retailer named company veteran Scott Key to the new position of senior VP and general manager of customer experience for its namesake brand. It also announced that Rebekka Bay, creative director for the Gap brand, was departing the company, effective immediately.

The latest changes come on the heels of Gap’s announcement last week that it was shutting down its Piperlime brand.
Five Mobile Messaging Tips for Retailers

By Scollay Petry, OtherLevels

Top of mind for retailers wanting to better engage with shoppers in their brick-and-mortar locations this holiday season are in-location technologies (e.g. beacons) and the personalization tactics they make possible. According to MediaPost, about 20% of retailers already use iBeacons, while 54% plan to implement the technology by 2015. With the promise of immediacy and “in-store engagement,” others undoubtedly will jump on the beacon bandwagon soon.