News

Toys ‘R’ Us continues to narrow loss
Things are looking up for Toys “R” Us. The nation’s largest specialty toy retailer posted a 20% increase in operating profit and reduced its net loss for the second-quarter amid reduced costs, including the expense of running its now-shuttered Times Square flagship. In addition, the retailer announced it successfully reached an agreement to refinance all of its 2017 notes and a portion of its 2018 maturities.
eBags’ new airport mantra: ‘Reunited, and it feels so good’
All travelers agree: Lost luggage can ruin any trip.

With an eye on privacy and ease of use, eBags new smart solution hopes to streamline the travel experience. The luggage and travel accessory pure-play retailer has developed an app-enabled ID tag that reunites lost luggage with their owners.

Unlike the traditional luggage tag, which prominently displays the owner's contact information for anyone to see, the eBags Connected Luggage Tag uses patent-pending privacy controls to let customers control which personal information they display on tags, and when.

Report: Digital-influenced in-store spending keeps rising

Despite an increase in digitally-influenced retail spending, a gap still remains between retailers and digital shoppers.

Digital interactions influence 56 cents of every dollar spent in retail stores, totaling $2.1 trillion by the end of the year – up from 14 cents of every dollar in 2013, according to Deloitte's new study, “The New Digital Divide: The Future of Digital Influence in Retail.”
2016 Holiday Preview: Calendar shifts could benefit retailers

It’s no secret that online shopping and changing consumer preferences continue to impact physical retail traffic. Despite the shifting landscape, retail sales remain largely intact and, more importantly, are expected to increase year-over-year this holiday season.

November and December (NRF weeks 40 – 48) are known as primetime for physical retailers. Sales generated during this period immediately impact a brands’ bottom line, and they set the stage for either success or struggle in the first quarter of the following year.
Another sports retailer files for bankruptcy

The waning popularity of golf has taken its toll on the nation’s largest specialty golf retailer.

Golfsmith International Holdings Inc. on Wednesday filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, amid increasing debt and citing a strategy that it launched several years back to open bigger, most costly stores at a time when golf was beginning to decline in popularity. (Just last month, Nike last month announced it was leaving the golf hardware business, its worst-performing division. Adidas is selling its golf equipment business. )
Real estate companies rise on sustainability index

North American real estate owners and developers ratcheted up their green profiles markedly this year, though they still lag global trendsetters, according to the latest results of an annual sustainability study. In GRESB’s annual environmental assessment of real estate developers and investment trusts, North American companies averaged a score of 59 out of a possible hundred, a five-point rise from last year and just shy of the global average of 60.
Electronics giant adds mobile wallet

The mobile wallet wars are heating up again. Best Buy is the newest retailer to accept mobile payments, a move that it expects to streamline checkout and drive loyalty. A multiyear agreement with Chase enables the chain to accept Chase Pay in its stores, on BestBuy.com, and in the Best Buy app.
Holiday forecast: Higher sales, more online shopping

The holiday shopping frenzy has begun, and it is shaping up to be more digital than ever.

Summer has barely said goodbye, but consumers nationwide have already turned their attention to the holidays. In fact, nearly one third of consumers, and nearly half of parents, began holiday shopping before Labor Day.
‘Workbars:’ The new gym membership?

The mobile workforce is changing the face of the workplace, and Staples wants to lead the next phase of this change.
Report: Digital-influenced in-store spending keeps rising

Despite an increase in digitally-influenced retail spending, a gap still remains between retailers and digital shoppers.

Digital interactions influence 56 cents of every dollar spent in retail stores, totaling $2.1 trillion by the end of the year – up from 14 cents of every dollar in 2013, according to Deloitte's new study, “The New Digital Divide: The Future of Digital Influence in Retail.”