Content about Retailing

PALO ALTO, Calif. — Aisle411, a mobile retail navigation service, on Tuesday announced that its virtual mapping and navigation smartphone application is available to use in all of Walgreens' 7,907 drug stores nationwide.

With Aisle411's in-store mapping platform, customers can use their smartphones to view maps of any Walgreens store, allowing shoppers to locate products down to a particular section of each aisle. Walgreens is the first national retailer with all of its stores mapped in a mobile application, Aisle411 stated.

Social media is an important component of ongoing brand marketing, as well as any advertising campaign for a drug store retailer or brand. Integrated communications have the most impact because earned, owned and paid media reinforce and amplify the message. All channels feed off each other; the more frequently a potential customer sees or hears about a brand or retailer, particularly in more than one context or venue, the more likely she is to remember and purchase.

URBANDALE, Iowa — Hy-Vee will close a store in central Iowa to prepare for the opening of a new store next door that the company called its "most innovative."

Remember when retail transactions were completed based only on the assortment found within the confines of a brick-and-mortar store? Truth is, we may never return to those days.

I’ve heard arguments that as a result of retail choices, formats and virtual storefronts, consumers will no longer establish relationships with retailers. As a result, loyalty will be lost.

Honestly, I disagree. Multi-channel retailing not only has the potential to enhance the shopping experience, but also the ability to strengthen relationships with patrons.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT — Smartphones do — and will continue to — influence retail sales. The surveys that suggest this continue to mount, and a new Deloitte study serves as further evidence that retailers and manufacturers are wise not to rest on their laurels.

(THE NEWS: Deloitte: Smartphones will influence $689 billion in retail store sales by 2016. For the full story, click here)

NEW YORK — Smartphones will continue to influence retail sales and will grow to represent 19% of total store sales by 2016, according to new Deloitte research.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The purchasing behaviors of consumers continue to reflect the ever-challenging economic climate, according to a new report from Acosta Sales and Marketing.

With more than half of U.S. online shoppers buying beauty and personal care products online, beauty brands and retailers must embrace multichannel marketing in order to succeed and reach consumers where they are, according to a new study by A.T. Kearney and its Global Consumer Institute.


The study, dubbed “Beauty and the Beast,” examined the shopping behaviors of consumers and the implications of retailers and beauty brands. The findings are based on survey responses from 1,381 participants across 50 U.S. states and Canada.


LOS ANGELES — Nearly half of U.S. shoppers plan to spend more this back-to-school shopping season than in 2011, according to a recent PriceGrabber survey.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — It has been 50 years since Hendrik and Fred Meijer opened "Thrifty Acres" in Grand Rapids, Mich., marking the birth of the nation's pioneering supercenter and an innovative concept that grew into a retail phenomenon.

"They didn't realize it at the time, but our father and grandfather were making history when they opened 'Thrifty Acres' in June 1962," stated Hank Meijer, co-chairman. "The store offered groceries and general merchandise and enabled customers to enjoy 'one-stop shopping.'"

It’s an underappreciated fact that advertising drives store sales. Many marketers don’t appreciate just how critical it is. Here’s a secret: The “closer” to the store the advertising is, the more likely it is that retailers will see a direct correlation between advertising and sales.

For both brands and retailers, media is key to introduce a brand or product and ensure it flies off a retailer’s store shelves.

The facts are these: Brands need media to let customers know they exist.

So many times we see a new brand, new product or re-emerging brand focus solely on distribution. Often this is the case for good reason: It’s all the brand can afford. But it’s always a mistake, and here’s why.