News

Overstock sees online sales surge
As holiday shoppers hunted for online deals Thanksgiving weekend the Overstock.com Web site provided fertile hunting grounds.

The retailer said its sales between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday increased 23 percent compared to the same period the prior year. In addition to new customers, the increase was driven by an 8 percent increase in average individual order size. Cyber Monday sales increased 24 percent while Thanksgiving day saw the largest gain, up 38 percent off of a smaller initial base than Cyber Monday.
Dollar General and Dollar Tree trade barbs over Family Dollar
Goodlettsville, Tenn. — Dollar General Corp. and Dollar Tree engaged in a verbal war on Friday as they both seek to acquire Family Dollar. In a news release, Dollar Tree said Dollar General's bid "may ultimately fail" because the Federal Trade Commission may require it to sell more than the 1,500 stores the retailer has said it is willing to let go of.

It’s all aboard at Gander Mountain

Seasonal excitement at seven of Gander Mountain’s 154 stores is being driven by a train-themed merchandising initiative called the Holiday Express.

In a first-of-its-kind effort, seven stores in Florida, Minnesota, Missouri, New York and Virginia feature the large seasonal display filled with activities and an area where kids can have a free photo taken with Santa.
Report: Kohl’s new loyalty program pilot garners 10 million enrollees

Menomonee Falls, Wis. — Kohl’s Department Stores had a tough third quarter that included a 20% drop in profits, but the retailer reportedly sees its loyalty program and mobile wallet as important competitive assets. According to the Wall Street Journal, a 300-store pilot program of the new Kohl’s loyalty program garnered 10 million enrollees, and another 10 million shoppers have joined since the program went nationwide in October.
Delia's to liquidate, file for Chapter 11

Teen retailer Delia’s Inc. plans to liquidate operations and file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection "in the very near term."

The company has struggled with weak sales for years and has not reported an annual profit since 2007.

Several teen apparel retailers have been losing market share to fast-fashion brands such as H&M, Forever 21 and Zara.
American Eagle Q3 profit down 63%

Pittsburgh — American Eagle Outfitters’ profit fell 63% in the third quarter, to $9.03 million from $24.9 million in the year-ago period. The drop was partially driven by costs related to a restructuring program that includes closing underperforming stores and reducing headquarters headcount.
Feuding continues in the Family Dollar affair

As the acquisition of Family Dollar moves closer to resolution, would-be acquirers Dollar Tree and Dollar General maintain widely differing views on the superiority of their respective offers and the opinion of federal regulators.
SAP survey: Omnichannel increases customer expectations

Newtown Square, Penn. – Omnichannel is increasing the reach retailers have to their customers, but also increasing customer expectations. According to a survey of marketing decision-makers in omnichannel consumer products organizations from SAP, 86% of respondents agree that omnichannel has meant that customer and consumer expectations of the organization have increased.
Meijer cooks up help for food pantries

Meijer is responding to a need from food pantries for nutrition education resources by publishing a cookbook that features recipes using ingredients frequently found in food pantries.

The retailer has distributed English and Spanish versions of Simply Cook to its food bank and pantry partners across the Midwest. During the holiday season, food banks see a tremendous increase in demand of free meals per day.
Argentina’s Musimundo meets Cyber Monday demand with IBM Cloud

Buenos Aires, Argentina — Specialty entertainment applicance retailer Musimundo, which operates more than 200 stores in Argentina, deployed its e-commerce platform on the IBM Cloud to meet increased customer demand on Cyber Monday.

As it prepared for Cyber Monday 2014, Musimundo's greatest challenge was to address the number of entries of people to its website per second, and it needed to manage load balance and security levels in accordance with regulatory requirements.