News

New York City -- An overwhelming majority (72%) of retailers report having a “great deal” of cash on their balance sheets and nearly half of them plan to invest some of it on information technology going forward, according to a survey by KPMG. At the same time, the executives’ assessment of the overall business outlook reflects only modest improvements in revenue and hiring in 2012.

The Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC) is taking place this week (July 10 – 14) in Los Angeles, with some 15,000 from around the globe in attendance at the Staples Center. It’s a huge event, with over 100 breakout sessions each day, 22 regional keynotes and country breakouts. To kick-off the show, CEO Steve Ballmer said that, thanks to partners, Windows 7 has sold more than 400 million licenses in less than two years, and is still the fastest-selling operating system in history.

Here are some  other interesting tidbits from the conference:

Retail site selection is not just a matter of available real estate. It’s an analytical challenge that requires sophisticated statistical modeling and a thorough understanding of the market potential of a location. Devon Wolfe, managing director of Americas Strategy & Analytics, Troy, N.Y.- based Pitney Bowes Business Insight, discusses the Top 10 most common mistakes that seem to repeatedly plague businesses and hinder their success:

1. Assuming you can build a model for all situations

MENOMONEE FALLS, Wis. — Kohl's announced that it is launching an online contest to celebrate the fall launch of its exclusive Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony Collections.

Customers are invited to go online and submit a video showcasing why they love Lopez and/or Anthony. Fifteen winners will be selected to win an all-expense paid trip to New York City with their best friend to experience everything that Jennifer and Marc love about their hometown of New York City, the company reported.

SALT LAKE CITY — Walmart and Sam's Club stores, with the help of associate, customer and member donations, between May 1 and June 13 raised more thatn $27.9 million for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.

During the six-week campaign, Walmart and Sam’s Club customers and members were invited to make a donation of $1, $2 or $5 at the register to the Children's Miracle Network Hospital in their community. Additional in-store fundraisers were held to bolster fundraising efforts.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Retail Orphan Initiative on Tuesday announced the launch of an online charity locator to match up retailers looking to donate overstocked merchandise with local charities. The charity locator features an interactive map of nearby charities from a RetailROI-developed database of 501c3 organizations across the country that focus on at-risk children, women in distress or families in need.

MONTVALE, N.J. — A&P announced that it has introduced a new line of locally raised chicken, turkey and beef products exclusively available to customers at select A&P, Pathmark, Superfresh, Waldbaum’s and The Food Emporium stores. All Mid-Atlantic Country Farms products are raised by family-owned farms using humane and sustainable farming methods, reducing the environmental impact of shipping food products over long distances, the company reported.

MIAMI — Regional pharmacy chain Navarro Discount Pharmacy, which currently has 29 stores, has named finance executive Juan Ortiz the company's CFO, to the position of CEO.

Ortiz succeeds CEO Steve Kaczynski, whose expertise in retail merchandising and marketing over the last 18 months has been instrumental in setting a strategic direction for the company and expanding its footprint in South Florida and nationally.

DULUTH, Ga. — NCR Corporation announced that it will acquire Radiant Systems, a leading provider of multichannel point-of-sale and managed host service solutions to the hospitality and specialty retail  markets, through a cash tender offer of $28 per Radiant Systems share. The equity purchase price of $1.2 billion has been approved by  the boards of directors of each company. NCR and Radiant Systems currently anticipate the transaction will close during the third quarter of 2011, subject to regulatory approval.

Athletic footwear is displayed like prized museum artifacts in Sneakerology, a 600-sq.-ft.-store in Sydney, Australia. Each shoe -- there are nearly 300 in total -- is presented in its own plywood box on the wall. The boxes are neatly ordered and offset by half unit on each level. Each has a number that identifies the shoe inside it.