As 2007 came to a close, a number of fledgling retail startups managed to take root amidst the rubble. Indochino, Smashburger and Journelle all launched during that disruptive year, and — despite significant changes in the economy, technology and customer expectations — all have thrived.

Overloaded shoppers don’t make the best customers: 57 percent of shoppers in a Barclaycard study said they’re less likely to shop with a brand in the future if they experience stress during a visit. Emily Hamilton, senior brand manager at FRCH Design Worldwide, says “retailers should be moving from transactional to experiential, which drives repeat business.”

The logistical hurdles and technological expertise needed to put an entire store inventory online can seem insurmountable for independent grocers. Broulim’s Fresh Foods, based in Idaho, and upstate New York chain Dash’s Markets have been using the Rosie platform for two years to facilitate ecommerce capabilities, including delivery.

Eyebrow waxing franchise Waxing the City is moving into the product market, launching a dermatologist-approved, paraben-free, hypoallergenic collection. Brand President Angela Jaskolski says the company, which is aiming for 350 locations by the end of next year, wants their guests to “continue putting their best brow forward long after they leave the studio.”

Employees at a Lowe’s in Virginia are getting some high-tech help from a lightweight and flexible “exosuit,” developed in conjunction with Virginia Tech. The suit reinforces proper lifting form and enables users to exert less force to complete movements.

The digital edition of STORES includes must-read pieces, including the articles featured here. Read the current issue and browse the archives for issues you may have missed.

As the chief economist for the world’s largest retail trade organization, and with over 35 years of experience, Jack Kleinhenz’s days revolve around big data and economic forecasting models. On this week’s episode of "Retail Gets Real," Kleinhenz sits down in the podcast studio to explain how and why NRF forecasts the economic future and what he thinks is on the horizon.

NRF’s annual Retail Holiday Planning Playbook builds on themes to help retailers tackle planning for the upcoming holiday season. The report combines consumer survey data and retailer insights to inspire company-wide conversations about marketing, operations, fulfillment and other holiday plans.

For the third consecutive year, NRFtech featured a collection of startups in the “Tour of the Possible” program, selected from a marketplace that indexes more than 162,000 companies focused on digital innovation. NRF’s Tony Fontana looks at each startup’s area of expertise and what they bring to the table for catalyzing innovation in any organization.

Lojas Renner, Brazil’s largest fashion retailer, has deployed Oracle Retail solutions to help transform operations and build a foundation for growth. The company is using Oracle Retail to modernize and simplify operations and support the costs to prepare for omnichannel in Brazil.

French luxury group Kering, and Alibaba Group and its affiliate Ant Financial Services have come to a groundbreaking agreement to cooperate in their efforts to protect intellectual property and take joint enforcement actions online and offline against infringers to provide the best consumer experience and a trusted environment.

Ingenico Group, a global leader in seamless payment, announced City Furniture, South Florida’s leading furniture provider, has chosen to upgrade the point of sale across its 15 City Furniture and 12 Ashley Furniture HomeStore showrooms. City Furniture also partnered with IBM to roll out three MobileFirst applications, which enable its 400 sales associates to streamline the in-store path to purchase.

Capitalizing on both its diverse portfolio of brands and market leadership in the home category, Williams-Sonoma Inc. announced the launch of the Design Crew, a new cross-brand design services initiative. For the first time, customers will be able to work with the Design Crew, Williams-Sonoma Inc.’s team of design experts, who specialize in helping find the right products and services for a variety of needs at home, across all eight Williams-Sonoma Inc. brands, including Williams Sonoma, Williams Sonoma Home, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, PBteen, Mark and Graham, Rejuvenation and West Elm.

SaaS shopping app platform Shopgate has partnered with ReCharge, the leading solution for recurring bills and subscriptions, to create an integration that will help merchants drive repeat business purchases, increase customer loyalty and grow retention rates.

The iconic Mall of America shopping complex has installed a sophisticated indoor positioning system, StepInside, with the help of industry leader Senion. The technology, which works like GPS for indoor locations, is designed to help the mall enhance visitor experiences by directing visitors to their desired retail, restaurant or entertainment destination within the complex through an app on their mobile devices.

TVPage, a provider of cloud-based video technologies, has announced a partnership with SLI Systems, a global provider of ecommerce search-based technologies, to enable online shoppers to find relevant videos through an intelligent and integrated video search solution delivered to retail web and mobile commerce experiences.