TECHNOLOGY

Nordstrom reaps its own rewards from redesigned rewards program
With an eye on personalization and engagement, Nordstrom revamped its Nordstrom Rewards program -- a move that has earned the chain 1.7 million new members since its launch in May. "We heard from our customers that they wanted a more personalized and flexible loyalty program," said Chris Holloway, VP of loyalty, Nordstrom.
Toys 'R' Us lands American Girl
In a deal that comes right before the all-important holiday selling season, Toys “R” Us has entered into an exclusive partnership with one of the toy industry’s premier doll brands. Mattel’s American Girl division announced a multi-year partnership with Toys “R” Us that will make the toy giant the first — and only — U.S.-based retailer to feature American Girl in-store shops.

Lowe’s reboots customer engagement with in-store robots

Eager to streamline the in-store shopping experience, Lowe’s will introduce a fleet of retail service robots this fall throughout select stores in the San Francisco Bay area.
Special webinar on the network connectivity during the holiday rush

Don’t miss this Chain Store Age webinar on retailers’ most important selling season: the holidays. Entitled “Holiday Uptime: Preparing your network for the holiday rush,” the presentation will offer tips for developing a network outage plan and offer advice on how to issue-proof a network. It will also reveal common network traps overlooked by retailers.
Sears reenters category it exited four years ago

Sears Holding Corp. is hoping to capitalize on the upswing in home improvement projects. The retailer announced it is bringing back paint and related accessories to its stores under three different brands: Craftsman, Weatherbeater and Easy Living. It’s the first time the Craftsman brand will be extended to the paint category. Sears will test the new offerings in 23 stores nationwide before a chainwide rollout.
David’s Bridal future-proofs in-store network

In effort to protect its organization from potential data breaches and prepare for the delivery of new omnichannel services, David’s Bridal is modernizing its failover network.
Report: Email campaign opening rates are highest on…

Staying true to the adage, “timing is everything,” retailers must be mindful that the best days for email-driven engagement don’t necessarily translate into same-day conversions, according to a new report from Yes Lifecycle Marketing.
Report: Retailers should respond to needs of ‘silver’ shoppers

Convenience stores stand to benefit the most from a greying population. That’s according to new report from Fung Global Retail & Technology which looks at the impact of the growing 65-and-over population on global economies, industries and retail.
Coupon usage — print and digital — rises

Consumers aren’t ready to let go of print coupons. A majority (58%) of respondents reported using more print coupons over the past year, according to the 2016 Purse String Survey by Valassis. Thirty-eight of respondents said the same about mobile coupons and 32% are using online coupons or coupon codes more often.
Nordstrom expands deal with specialty retailer

Nordstrom shoppers will now be able to purchase J.Crew apparel, as well as its sister brand Madewell. Continuing to expand its partnerships with select brands, the department store retailer has entered into a new deal with J. Crew Group to sell an edited assortment of J.Crew apparel at select full-line Nordstrom and on its website beginning Sept. 12. The assortment, to be featured in 16 Nordstrom locations, will include women's apparel, accessories and petites (online only).