News

Charlotte, N.C. – Belk Inc. looks like it has found a winner in a just-completed omnichannel back-to-school promotion.

Working with digital marketing provider HelloWorld, Belk allowed customers to both submit and vote on “looks” such as dorm room, game day and night out, created with Belk merchandise.

Seattle – Amazon.com is reportedly doing some experimental tinkering with the two-day shipping guarantee for its paid Prime loyalty program.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon is testing a program called “Ship by Region” that exempts some Prime items from free two-day shipping, depending on where they are shipped from.

Dallas – Shopping is becoming more of a snap than ever for mobile-savvy customers at Neiman Marcus.

The tony department store chain is partnering with visual search technology provider Slyce Inc. to expand the “Snap. Find. Shop” feature available in the retailer’s mobile app.

New York - Macy’s Inc. is reaching out to fashion-minded millennials by providing an online link to up-and-coming independent designers.

The retailer is entering a new collaboration with online fashion technology start-up company Nineteenth Amendment on Macys.com.

Bellport, N.Y. – Perfumania wants to be sure investors hear about its growth potential. The specialty fragrance and beauty retailer has retained JCIR, a New York City-based investor relations firm, to expand its investor relations and financial community outreach program.

Cincinnati – Retailers seeking to attract back-to-school shoppers should make sure they are well schooled in the ins and outs of providing good customer service.

A new LoyaltyOne, Verde Group survey of 2,500 U.S. consumers shows that efficient service, more than price or product availability, drives store loyalty and repeat purchases for shoppers with kids younger than 18 at mass merchandise stores such as Walmart, Target and Staples.

Charlotte, N.C. – How do social influencers discover the latest hot retailers and products?

Yuno, a new social shopping e-commerce site, allows users to discover and shop for more than 70 million products, curates fashion, lifestyle, sports and technology products from retailers including Macy's, Best Buy, Nieman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue and Foot Locker.

Retailers invest in a variety of systems to track a wide range of supply chain and sourcing activities, but often overlook the need for technology to track ethical sourcing. Ethical sourcing refers to ensuring that products retailers sell do not involve exploitation or mistreatment of workers, unsafe facilities or production processes, stolen or counterfeit goods, or environmental hazards.

Online shopping is driving more sales and foot traffic in brick-and-mortar stores than ever before. In fact, Deloitte expects digital interactions will influence 64 cents of every dollar spent in retail stores by the end of 2015 – that’s $2.2 trillion worth of in-store sales that are aided by e-commerce.

Minneapolis -- Salads and fancy pizza will soon be on the menu at a very limited number of Target locations.

Starting in October, the retailer plans to test  fast-casual concepts in some 14 stores as it responds to customers looking for higher-quality food and more of a café atmosphere, USA Today reported.