Content about Shopping

LAS VEGAS — Cosmoprof North America has announced the first-ever "TV Shopping Open-See" at the upcoming conference in Las Vegas in July.

The beauty industry is a constant when it comes to innovation, trends and consumer demand. The objective of every brand is to partner with a retailer, especially one who connects with a wide range of consumers through the television. Home shopping channels, such as QVC and Canada’s The Shopping Channel, connect with millions of consumers who watch and shop from the privacy of their homes, CPNA stated.

According to research, ownership of smartphones and tablets in particular have grown rapidly over the past couple of years, and that has created a multi-headed omnichannel hydra of a customer who retailers across all channels are desperately trying to appease.

SAN FRANCISCO — More than half of Americans shop and spend money to improve their moods, according to a new survey.

The study, by Ebates.com, found that 63.9% of women engage in "retail therapy," compared with 39.8% of men, and the belief that it improves moods was found among 39.2% of women, compared with 20.6% of men. The survey was conducted online by TNS Global and included 1,000 adults.

Google is offering a service called Google Shopping Express, which would offer same-day delivery from brick-and-mortar stores in the San Francisco Bay Area to the Internet giant's employees. Target and several other retailers have been named as possible partners.

WASHINGTON — According to a new spending survey from the National Retail Federation (NRF), consumer spending for Easter 2013 will be flat when compared to the holiday last year.

The NRF 2013 Easter Spending Survey, conducted by BIGinsight, was designed to gauge consumer behavior and shopping trends related to Easter. The poll of 5,050 consumers was conducted from March 5 to 11, 2013.

Omnichannel. It's one of the hottest topics in retail. It's seamless retailing in real-time. It's making sure that the brand experience coming out of a retailer is exemplary no matter how a consumer chooses to engage — on the e-commerce site, through an app for the tablet or smartphone, within the brick-and-mortar location or any two of those venues simultaneously.

PALO ALTO, Calif. — Shopkick, a shopping app, on Wednesday announced that Nielsen ranked Shopkick No. 34 out of approximately 1 million apps in December 2012. While still trailing giants like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter overall, Shopkick dominated the shopping category during the holiday season, with more frequent and prolonged usage than all physical retailers' own apps including Starbucks, Walmart, Walgreens, Kroger and Safeway, the app developer noted. 

Washington, D.C. — Retail industry sales (which exclude automobiles, gas stations and restaurants) will increase 3.4%, down slightly from 4.2% in 2012 and 5.8% in 2011, according to the National Retail Federation’s 2013 economic forecast.

The lukewarm forecast, released Monday, comes on the heels of a holiday season that went head-to-head with Washington’s political wrangling over fiscal concerns, shifting consumers’ spending plans downward. In the end, holiday sales in 2012 grew 3.0%.

CHICAGO — Growth in 2013 will be slow-going in the first half of 2013 but will pick up at the end, suggested James Russo, SVP global consumer insights for Nielsen, during a webinar Wednesday afternoon. "The consumer remains in maintenance mode," he said. "Consumers are being pragmatic in their spending. Uncertainty dominates."

NEW YORK — Despite caution among consumers, retailers wrapped up 2012 with a healthy holiday shopping season, according to a new report by a retailing trade group.

The National Retail Federation said Tuesday that holiday retail sales increased 3% over the year before, to $579.8 billion. December retail sales increased 0.8% seasonally adjusted from November and 2.1% unadjusted year over year. Nevertheless, the 3% increase was still below the NRF's projected 4.1% growth. Meanwhile, nonstore holiday sales grew 11.1%.

CHICAGO — Men are an ideal target for online beauty and beauty retailers may want to consider expanding more marketing efforts to further leverage this growing opportunity, according to recent research from Mintel.

The ease and convenience features of online shopping appeal to some 60% of men ages 18 of 34 years who buy beauty products and agree that buying online is more convenient than shopping in store. This compares with 52% of women of the same age and 41% of their older male counterparts (ages 55 years and older), according to Mintel.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens will keep stores open on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to allow last-minute Christmas shopping, the retail pharmacy chain said Wednesday.

This includes 1,600 24-hour locations that will be open around the clock, while most Walgreens stores will stay open until midnight through Dec. 23, and nearly all stores will be open during regular hours on Christmas Eve, including pharmacies, which will be open from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. On Christmas, non-24-hour stores will be open from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m., and pharmacies will be open at 24-hour stores.