News

High-profile brand eyes bricks-and-mortar growth
Dyson, the consumer electronics brand best known for it pricey vacuum cleaners, has opened a store in the heart of London’s main shopping district. The sleek, futuristic-looking store, on Oxford Street, is designed to allow shoppers to see and test Dyson’s complete line of vacuum cleaners, fans, heaters, humidifiers and other products, with some 65 items on display. It also has 64 different dust/dirt samples and four floor surfaces available on which customers can to test vacuum cleaners.
Cloud makes New Hampshire Liquor Commission ERP more potent
When it comes to supporting liquor sales, the Granite State is looking for a rock-solid enterprise foundation. The New Hampshire Liquor Commission, which operates 79 retail stores across New Hampshire, is turning to the Microsoft Dynamics AX ERP platform. The New Hampshire Executive Council has approved a contract with global Microsoft Dynamics partner AlfaPeople to implement and support the application. The $19 million dollar, 10-year contract was won in competition with multiple solutions and through a multi-year selection process.

Glitch affects Starbucks pricing

A computer error caused Starbucks to overcharge some customers and forced the coffee giant to disclose a planned price increase. In a brief statement released on the retailer’s corporate blog at about 8 p.m. ET Friday, July 1 and updated about 11 a.m. ET Saturday, July 2. Starbucks said a price adjustment was prematurely entered into the POS systems of U.S. company-owned stores. As a result, some customers were overcharged by as much as 30 cents for their beverages.
Survey: Back-to-school spending increases — but not across the board

Parents are opening their wallets for the upcoming academic year, but being selective in what, where and how they buy.
Specialty grocer commits to solar power

Mom’s Organic Market is extending its renewable energy portfolio. The family owned and operated Maryland-based chain has begun purchasing all power from a designated solar farm in Kingsville, Maryland., bundled with national solar renewable energy credits. This 1.5-megawatt DC system is projected to output 2,124,000 kilowatts per year. Mom’s will purchase the entire system's output for the next 20 years.
Pirch, New York City

Upscale kitchen, bath and outdoor appliance retailer Pirch has opened its largest location to date, a three-floor, 32,000-sq.-ft. flagship in an historic, former ironworks building in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood.
Walmart Pay undergoes big growth spurt

Walmart did not reach its stated goal of rolling out the Walmart Pay digital payment service to every store by the end of June, but it certainly made a lot of headway.
New York grocer reaches out to customers

With 15 regional stores, New York-based Fairway Market needs to compete with larger rivals on quality of experience. To that end, Fairway has deployed the omnichannel retail platform from Index to help better communicate with customers and provide an optimal experience across various touchpoints. The platform includes secure in-store payment solutions that offer processing flexibility and are compliant with EMV and P2PE protocols. Fairway can also accept a variety of tender types, including Apple Pay and Android Pay.
Investment, interest in energy efficiency at all-time high

That’s one of the key findings of The 2016 Johnson Controls Energy Efficiency Indicator (EEI) survey of more than 1,200 facility and energy management executives.
Report: J.C. Penney looks abroad for new tech center

The J.C. Penney Co Inc. is reportedly developing a new IT facility in a popular overseas location.
Home furnishings powerhouse debuts new store design

Pottery Barn unveiled a revamped interior at its newly designed store at The Village at Corte Madera, in Corte Madera, California. Inspired by a modern farmhouse, the 12,288-sq.-ft. location features dramatic high ceilings with exposed wood beams, a skylight in the center of the space, and 11-foot high steel framed doors that open to an outside seating area at the front of the store.
TechBytes: Staying Competitive on Amazon Prime Day

Tuesday, July 12 marks the return of Amazon Prime Day. Based on last year’s results, Amazon will grab a sizable chunk of all online sales that day. Special “countdown deals” starting July 5 will also help funnel more e-commerce traffic than normal in Amazon’s direction. Walmart is countering with its own July online sales event built around its ShippingPass free shipping program.