News

Social shopping arena gets more crowded
Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube have some new competition as social commerce tools.

Visual commerce provider Curalate is releasing Curalate Reveal, a new solution enabling consumers to discover and shop products by clicking on images in blogs. Thus retailers can create shopping experiences on their own blogs or blogs of key influencers.
Adobe: Holiday shoppers are on the move
Mobile will drive more than half of Thanksgiving Day online shopping visits (51%) for the first time in 2015.

That is just one mobile-friendly statistic from the new Adobe 2015 Digital Index Online Shopping Predictions. The Index also forecasts mobile will account for close to a third (29%) of all holiday sales, a 12% increase from 2014. iOS will drive 22% of sales, Android just 7%.

O’Reilly Automotive driving record growth

O’Reilly Automotive plans to accelerate its expansion plans in 2016 following record revenue and profit in the third quarter.

The auto parts retailer now plans to open 210 new stores next year. The company is also on track to open 205 new stores by the end of 2015.
For Walgreens CEO, Rite Aid deal may not be his last

In the wake of the news that Walgreens Boots Alliance would be acquiring Rite Aid, Walgreens CEO Stefano Pessina told the New York Times that he is open to opportunities that would expand the company’s footprint around the globe.“Due to my age, I won’t have a possibility to make many more acquisitions,” Pessina told the Times. “And unfortunately, I cannot amuse myself dealing directly with small acquisitions, and dealing directly with owners and so on. ...
Tuesday Morning turnaround well underway

Just a few weeks after losing its CEO, Tuesday Morning posted impressive financial results for the first quarter, including an increase in same-store sales.

For the first quarter ended Sept. 30, the Texas-based off-price retailer posted a same-store sales increase of 3.6%. Net sales were $202.3 million, slightly higher than the prior year period. The company ended the first quarter with a store count of 757, a decrease of 44 stores year over year. Operating loss for the first quarter was $6 million.
Report: Target tests global digital waters

Target Corp. may have shuttered its Canadian stores, but that doesn’t mean the discounter is done with global retailing.

According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Target has expanded a 2014 pilot program that made about 200,000 items available to U.K. customers via eBay to 64 countries. Target is also partnering with international shipping logistics firm Borderfree in a test of a new global e-commerce site, intl.target.com.
Lidl breaks ground on U.S. headquarters

German discount grocery chain Lidl has broken ground for a new regional U.S. headquarters and distribution center in Spotsylvania County, Virginia.
Tech Guest Viewpoint: Collaborating via Data Fusion & Analytics

Baseball’s great accidental philosopher Yogi Berra once said, “If you don’t know where you are going, you might wind up someplace else.” In the retail business, knowing where you’re going means understanding sales, inventory, promotions, pricing, and assortment.
Ace prefers this POS vendor

Home improvement retailer Ace Hardware Corp. is making its POS preferences known.

Ace is officially endorsing Epicor as the POS provider for its 4,800 locally owned cooperative stores around the globe. Today, more than 3,000 Ace Hardware store locations are leveraging the Epicor Eagle retail business management solution.
Walmart COO says ‘trust me’ this holiday season

Easier shopping every day is the value proposition Walmart touting this holiday season as it contends shoppers are tired of pricing games played by other retailers.

As it does every holiday season, Walmart claims it will have low prices on a broad assortment and the hottest holiday items, but it is also touting an improve store experience and a strengthened omnichannel approach.