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USOC uniforms made in China
RetailWire panelists (including me) added their two cents’ worth to the recent controversy about U.S. Olympic uniforms being manufactured in China: It would not be difficult for the USOC to source...
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What’s the plan for 4th quarter payrolls?
At this writing (late September) several retailers have announced fairly aggressive hiring plans for holiday. My point of view, from a recent RetailWire post: Retailers may be finding that they have...
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Holiday 2012: Reason for optimism?
Nobody has a crystal ball about 4th quarter sales increases — especially with a Presidential election and hurricane recovery going on — but here’s my take. Today’s release of October sales underlines...
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How were November sales…really?
I submitted the following comment to RetailWire after Black Friday weekend — but before stores reported November comp sales. It turned out to be accurate: Most retailers’ comps were disappointing for...
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One more thought on Cyber Week 2012…
I don’t think there is an e-commerce or multi-channel retailer in business who failed to capitalize on Cyber Monday (or, in some cases, Cyber Week). So the online traffic must have been huge yesterday....
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Was this Black Friday comment premature?
I wrote the following for RetailWire after what was clearly a successful Black Friday weekend wrapped into a big Cyber Week. What’s not so apparent (a week before Christmas) is whether the momentum...
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Dollar General lowers prices (and a simple explanation)
In a recent RetailWire discussion, most panelists agreed with me that Dollar General is lowering prices for pretty basic reasons of capturing market share and driving store traffic. The thought that...
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An early take on holiday 2012 sales
RetailWire panelists had a chance right after Christmas to provide an early post-mortem on holiday 2012 sales. (And “post-mortem” may turn out to be the correct phrase.) We’ll know more when stores...
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Signs of weakness among the dollar stores?
The best-run dollar stores (Dollar General and Family Dollar) aren’t going away anytime soon. But it’s likely that their store-for-store sales growth will slow as post-recession shoppers start “trading...
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Walmart raises a red flag about February sales
RetailWire panelists discussed a leaked memo from a Walmart executive, describing what appears to be a tough sales month so far. There were plenty of reasons cited (the payroll tax hike, gas prices and...
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The NRF’s rose-colored glasses
RetailWire panelists are usually careful to leave their political views out of the daily discussions, but the current government shutdown (in day eight at this writing) is a hot topic. The context for...
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Cuba: How soon an opportunity for U.S. retailers?
Without veering into political comment, surely one of the biggest news stories in recent months is the more open relationship between the U.S. and Cuba. It’s interesting to reflect (as in the following...
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Too early to be bullish about 2015 sales
The National Retail Federation issued its full-year forecast at its annual gathering in January. The NRF is projecting sales over 4% for the full year — which, in my view (per the following RetailWire...
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Higher wages at Walmart: What’s the driving force?
Walmart (and some other retailers) recently announced starting wages in the $9-$10/hour range, depending on experience. The sheer size of Walmart helps redefine the “minimum wage” for the marketplace...
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Second half outlook getting shaky?
I wrote the following post on RetailWire in late July, as the NRF revised its sales forecast downward for the second half of 2015. This preceded the various market disruptions in August and early...
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Another over-forecast by the NRF
Retailers are optimists by nature, but the NRF seems to deserve a prize for blue-sky forecasting on a consistent basis. This time, the NRF has projected an 11% increase in Back to School sales, and...
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What to do about all that excess space?
U.S. retail has historically been “over-stored” but never more so than right now, with an escalating wave of brick-and-mortar closures. The question for mall developers (addressed in the following...
View ArticleIs Gen Z uniquely bargain-conscious?
From a couple of recent posts on RetailWire, here are some comments about whether today’s Gen Z shopper entering the consumer landscape is more price-conscious than his/her older sibling, parent or...
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