Retail Update

June 30, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

At Bountiful we take customer service very seriously and usually that's enough to move a custom order along with a minimum of glitches. Last year, however, we ran into a situation where things went from bad, to worse, to "I can't believe this is really happening!" It started when a new customer placed a $10,000 order for a sofa and two chairs. She selected a fabric from the sofa company's stock, we checked availability, and ordered additional fabric sent to the chair vendor. Suddenly, there was a four-week wait for the fabric, which the customer, in spite of a tight deadline, agreed to. ...Read More

June 26, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

Two-thirds of America’s consumers have a pet, with 64% owning more than one, according to a new “How America Shops” release from WSL Strategic Retail group. The report also shows that when the economy gets tough, most pet owners, 63% to be exact, choose not to cut back on spending when it comes to their pets. Food (40%), followed by medication (29%) and toys (28%) are the top categories pet owners are spending more on. Half of the 18% of pet owners who say they’ve actually increased spending on their animal friends, and a third of them are sticking with top- of-the-line pet products. A majority of this group (68%) says they treat their pets like children... and that group ...Read More

June 23, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (2)

If you're a retailer and you Twitter, check out CheapTweet, an application that scans Twitter for talk of special deals, discounts, coupons and sales posted by retailers, etailers, shoppers, couponing moms, bargain hunting blogs, etc. – then organizes it all by subject and rank for the benefit of a growing group of online shoppers and bargain hunters.

At first glance, CheapTweet.com is a little overwhelming, so here's a (sort-of) CheapTweet cheatsheet: if you’re a shopper, open up a personal CheapTweet account so you can rate products and save your deal finds; if you’re a seller, read CheapTweet’s “Guidelines for Those with Deals to Tweet."

June 18, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

Aspen, Colo. -- MacKenzie-Childs opened a 1,500-sq.-ft. dedicated store at Amen Wardy Home on May 29 (photo, right), showcasing more than 500 products including hand-crafted ceramics and enamel tableware, furniture and home accessories. “Aspen is an influential and significant market for luxury brands,” said Lee Feldman, CEO of MacKenzie-Childs. “Amen Wa...Read More

June 17, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (1)

Back in January 2007, my Retail Update column was about hosting and promoting in-store events to benefit local charities. Included in the text was a link to a generic template for writing a press release. I'm providing the link again because whenever I hear retailers discuss press coverage, this is a topic that always seems to come up. And it came up recently, when our editor in chief Jenny Heinzen York and a panel of retailers discussed how retailers can use the press to get more coverage in the media.

The venue was Ballroom B of the ...Read More