TECHNOLOGY

Denim specialty retailer helps shoppers find the ‘perfect fitting jeans’
Silver Jeans Co.’s newest service solves one of female consumers’ most dreaded tasks — shopping for jeans. By partnering with Fitcode, a fashion-data company that specializes in women's denim, Silver Jeans Co. now has a way to deliver a personalized, fit-focused shopping experience. Integrated on the retailer’s e-commerce site, the service allows consumers to take a fit quiz, and then shop personalized style recommendations tailored to their unique body types.
Five Common—and Costly—Omnichannel Mistakes
Brick-and-mortar retailers collectively have staked their claim online, accounting for at least half of U.S. e-commerce sales. The trouble is, most of them are losing money at it.

Study: Store managers’ roles evolve in the unified commerce era

To effectively service shoppers at store-level, managers need to evolve beyond their sales roles and become “problem solvers.” This means store managers must learn to master the combination of order fulfillment, inventory visibility and staffing to keep up with customer demands, according to the “Voice of Store Manager Survey,” a study from JDA Software Group. The second annual study is based on responses from 252 US-based retail store managers compiled in August.
Toy retailer prepares for newest business channel — an online marketplace

Toys “R” Us is adding a new customer touch-point that it will use to get merchandise into shoppers hands faster.
Coffee giant pulls the plug on online store

Starbucks Corp.’s online store has officially closed its virtual doors. The e-commerce site, which sold Starbucks’ branded merchandise — from mugs and coffee brewers to coffee, tea, and flavored syrups — shut down on Sunday, Oct. 1. The coffee giant decided to close the online store to focus on integrating its physical and digital channels, and to establish stores as destinations, according to Business Insider.
A Gap brand reaches for the cloud

A specialty retailer is streamlining its merchandising operations. Gap's Intermix division has become the company's first brand to transition to the cloud. The upscale specialty retailer is leveraging Oracle’s cloud-based platform to drive efficiencies across merchandising and inventory management. The platform supports end-to-end operational efficiencies and empowers the business teams among specialty apparel company Intermix.
M.Gemi bolsters in-store experience

M.Gemi, the Boston-based Italian-made footwear brand, is using a digital tool to drive in-store customer satisfaction. The direct-to-consumer retailer, which was founded online but recently jumped to the physical space, has launched an app for store associates that combines online and offline functions, allowing associates to provide an elevated experience for store shoppers.
Traditional grocers gaining ground with click-and-collection programs

The nation's supermarket retailers are positioning themselves to capture a significant majority of online grocery sales over the next decade or so. That's according to Joe McKeska, president of Elkhorn Real Estate Partners. He made his remarks during a panel discussion at Marquette University’s annual commercial real estate conference.
Furniture e-retailer debuts live delivery tracker
Menswear company sets its sights on improving the customer experience

Tailored Brands has taken steps to identify shoppers and drive customer satisfaction. The menswear company operates more than 1,400 locations in the U.S. and Canada, as well as digital channels, across a variety of brands. By partnering with ForeSee, Tailored Brands now has a solution that manages all customer experience (CX) intelligence from one centralized location.