News

Study: Grocery shoppers create social recipe
Social media plays an important role in the grocery shopping process. According to a new study from market research firm Packaged Facts, “Retail Food Marketing Trends in the U.S.: Technology, Mobile, and Social Media,” a majority of grocery store shoppers use social media to get recipes (59%).
Lowe’s smartens Iris strategy
Lowe’s Companies Inc. is trying to make its Iris smart home solution more accessible. The home improvement retailer is the newest participant member of the ZigBee Alliance.

Launched in July 2012, Iris by Lowe’s is a smart home solution created to monitor and control virtually everything in the home anytime, anywhere. Lowe’s is the most recent of 450 members currently working to develop and promote ZigBee Internet of Things (IoT) standards.

Omnichannel aspirations evident at Neiman Marcus

Neiman Marcus reported modest sales growth and a reduced loss for its recently ended fourth quarter as the operator of 85 stores eyes an initial public stock offering and a bright omnichannel future.
Want discounted Amazon Prime? Move fast

Amazon is using its winning of five Emmys on Sunday at the 67th Annual Emmy Awards to throw its competitors yet another fastball.

The company is reducing the price of its Amazon Prime loyalty program, which includes unlimited free two-day shipping, from $99 per year to $67 for one year. The catch is the deal will only run for 24 hours, between midnight Sept. 25 and ending midnight Sept. 26.
DIY chain leads online home appliance retailers

The top-ranked home appliance e-commerce website has been identified.

According to the new J.D. Power 2015 Appliance Shopper Website Evaluation Study, Lowe's ranks highest among appliance retailer websites, with a score of 848 out of 1,000, up by nine points from 2014.
Sportsman’s Warehouse breaking private equity bond

A planned secondary stock offering by Sportsman’s Warehouse Holdings means the rapidly expanding outdoor retailer no longer meets the definition of a “controlled company” but the private equity firm that brought the company public last year will still own a huge stake.
Steinmart moves on after SEC investigation

Steinmart didn’t admit wrongdoing and the Securities and Exchange Commission didn’t bring any charges, but concluding a nearly five year old accounting investigation still cost the company $800,000.

An $800,000 fine may not sound like much to retailers with annual sales in the billions, but Steinmart is relatively small, generating sales of $311 million from 269 stores in the second quarter. An $800,000 fine represents 20% of the company’s net income for the period.
Nordstrom expanding its give back brand

An innovative cause marketing initiative involving Nordstrom’s Treasure&Bond brand is being expanded to more merchandise categories, and non-profit beneficiaries couldn’t be happier.
Google unveils new mobile payment service, Android Pay

New York -- Apple Pay will soon have a rival. Google Inc. is launching a successor to Google Wallet called Android Pay, for Android phones running KitKat and above, PC World reported. It will be available in over 700,000 stores, including Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, and McDonald’s locations.

For the full story, click here.
Kohl’s kicks up omnichannel efforts; piloting same-day delivery

Kohl’s has been busy on the omnichannel front during 2015, and the retailer is now taking its efforts into high gear.

On Tuesday, the retailer announced several new omnichannel shopping tools, and said it will also pilot same-day delivery in select markets.