Tim Parry
Robert Passikoff, president of loyalty marketing firm Brand Keys, says Borders dug its own grave. For example, instead of adding e-readers, Borders’ inventory went from just books to also include mugs, candles and stationery.
Nearly four years after Takkt America sold it to private equity firm Caxton-Iseman Capital for $48 million, Conney Safety Products has made its own acquisition.
Bankrupt books and music merchant Borders Group has accepted a stalking horse bid from direct music and books seller Direct Brands worth more than $435 million. Direct Brands, a portfolio company of Najafi Companies, owns direct sellers Book-of-the-Month Club, Doubleday Book Clubs and Columbia House.
While it’s taken longer than many expected for U.S. consumers and merchants to connect with smartphone technology, mobile devices are now changing the way people shop
Since Johnson has been in charge for the trendy, fast-growing Apple Store chain, articles like this one from The Associated Press have speculated that J.C. Penney will go from square to hip. But even with J.C. Penney making moves to modify its image, can Johnson make the merchant’s customer experience more like Apple Store’s?
Daily deal sites from Groupon to LivingSocial to Gilt are part of a major etailing trend. Consumers make their way to flash sales sites with hopes of finding major markdowns on items they either need, or pull the trigger because they’re getting a bargain. But does partnering with these daily deal sites make sense for merchants? According to a recent survey by ForeSee Results, it does, but it doesn’t help with customer loyalty.
The Federal Reserve Board issued a final rule Wednesday establishing standards for debit card swipe fees, but does not match what was previously approved by the U.S. Senate.
Customers are no longer just finding your Website on browsers line Internet Explorer, FireFox and Safari. They are coming in through smartphones and portable tablet computers, and your site may not be compatible with those devices. That’s why you may want to consider a redesign on an HTML5-based platform.
Several merchants with bricks and mortar locations have turned to location-based apps like Foursquare to help build a mobile following. But old-school electronics merchant RadioShack may have cracked the Foursquare code last fall.
An amendment pushed by Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) that would have delayed implementation of swipe fee reform for two years did not get enough votes in Senate yesterday to break a filibuster. The amendment picked up 54 votes for and 45 against, but needed 60 yes votes to go into effect.