News

Three Thoughts on Real-Time Consumer Product Interactions
I recently participated in an SAP-sponsored panel discussion on Game-Changers Radio about how consumer product companies are using real-time consumer insights and engagement. Buoyed by constant customer connectivity, consumer product firms are gaining a much clearer and timelier picture of their end customers, and also directly engaging them near or in real time.
Domino’s promotes omnichannel ordering across channels

Report: Amazon considering yet another delivery method

Seattle – Amazon.com has no shortage of innovative ideas on connecting customers to the products they buy, and reportedly is considering yet another new delivery method. According to GeekWire, Amazon has filed a patent application to use public transportation to help get goods to customers.
Urban Outfitters beats Street with Q2 profit

Philadelphia – Although net income at Urban Outfitters Inc. slightly slipped in the second quarter of fiscal 2016 compared to the same period a year earlier, it still beat Wall Street expectations. Net income totaled $66.84 million, down 1% from $67.5 million.
Head merchant at Cabela's is stepping aside

Sporting goods retailer Cabela’s is making some changes in its executive leadership.

The company announced that Brian J. Linneman, EVP and CMO, will transition from his current position and become a strategic adviser to the company.
QVC adds some hipster cred with acquisition

QVC just gained some credibility among hipsters and millennials by buying a popular Internet flash sale site that caters to those younger shoppers.
Restoration Hardware targets teens

Teens with a hankering for pricey furniture and décor — and affluent parents — will now have a new place to shop.
More curbside pickup at Target

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Target customers at select stores in New York and New Jersey won’t have to get out of their cars anymore to pick up online orders.

Curbside, a Bay Area-based startup, announced that is has expanded its curbside pick-up service to New York and New Jersey with the rollout of 10 new Target locations. Until now, Curbside had only been available in the San Francisco Bay Area.
A brighter future for J.C. Penney?

Plano, Texas -- While it’s way too early to start popping the champagne, J.C. Penney Co. has to be pleased about its second quarter financial results, which topped analysts expectations and suggested that the company’s turnaround is in progress.
For retailers, it may be time to ramp up the buybacks

Retailers rely on a combination of dividend payments and share repurchase programs to return cash to stockholders, but the latter method is coming under scrutiny as Democrats look to leverage the populist theme of income inequality during the 2016 presidential campaign.