News

Big Lots celebrates families and mothers in particular through its national holiday television and online campaign launched on Nov. 1.

The campaign features four original songs - one in Spanish - which are intended to inspire sing-alongs.  The spots feature a singing trio that includes "America's Got Talent" finalist Deanna DellaCioppa, a Boston native who has performed with Stevie Wonder and Diana Ross. 

In this campaign, Big Lots emphasizes a special role mothers play in celebrating the holidays. 

The younger generation appears to be more brick-and-mortar than anyone expected.  They may live and breathe online, but come the holidays, they are going to the mall, says the new “2014 Holiday Shopping Behavior Survey” from Simon, a global retail real estate leader. 

89% of respondents between the ages of 18 and 33 who plan to buy one or more gifts said that they intended to shop at the mall this holiday season.

Coca-Cola Life, a new reduced-calorie beverage with a blend of cane sugar and stevia leaf extract, is hitting the stores nationwide. 

Coca-Cola Life addresses the health concerns over sugary sodas.  The green-labeled can or bottle contains 35% fewer calories than Coca Cola Classic and is said to taste closer to the original than Diet Coke, which is sweetened with aspartame.  

Discount online shopping site Overstock.com has lowered prices on books and is offering a 15% bonus to loyalty members in what CEO Patrick Byrne is calling a price war with Amazon.

"We will analyze the results and cost benefits of this price war against Amazon and decide how long to continue the promotion. Right now it's scheduled to last through Cyber Monday," said Byrne.

Although 83% of consumers say most of their shopping takes place in-store, they still report a variety of disconnects between the in-store and online retail experience.

According to a survey of 1,000 U.S. consumers from electronic shelf label (ESL) technology vendor DisplayData, 44% of U.S. consumers think retailers offer different prices online and offline.

Tailwinds from specialty pharmacy and increased generic utilization lifted CVS Health up on Tuesday, as the company posted net revenues of $35 billion, representing an increase of 9.7% for the three months ended Sept. 30.

The National Retail Federation has made a major change to the format and content of its annual trade show and convention, known as the Big Show, which is held every January in New York.

J. Patrick Doyle, president and CEO of Domino’s Pizza, has been appointed to the board of directors of Best Buy.  

Doyle has joined Domino’s in 1997, serving in a variety of leadership roles across its domestic and international businesses. He has been president and CEO of Domino’s since March 2010.

Sales continued to decline at Office Depot in the third quarter, but CEO Roland Smith said excellent execution allowed operating profits to more than double.

Total company sales on a pro-forma basis to reflect the merger of Office Depot and OfficeMax declined 3% to $4.1 billion during the period ended Sept. 27. The top line decline was steeper at the company’s 1,851 unit North American retail division where sales declined 7% to $1.7 billion due to store closures and a 3% same store sales decline driven by a reduced transaction volume. 

Glamour girl and a fashion mogul Paris Hilton has created a new fragrance to add to her $2 million fragrance portfolio.  A new scent With Love, Paris Hilton is dedicated to Hilton’s fans around the world.

From the scent to its gracefully designed bottle, With Love, Paris Hilton explores Hilton’s more sophisticated side, according to Harry Fremont, the perfumer of Firmenich fragrance house who created this new addition to Hilton’s fragrance collection.