Stores Weekly

First Edition

Everyone likes a good ranking. It generates discussion, stimulates debate, educates and allows for more in-depth exploration. International retailer rankings over the past two decades have fallen short in delivering against these objectives for a few reasons, particularly when looking at retailers that move up and down the rankings from one year to the next. Kantar Consulting has worked with STORES Magazine to produce an international retailer ranking that looks to minimize these challenges.

Visit https://stores.org/2019/03/01/top-50-global-retailers?utm_medium=STORES%20Weekly&utm_source=Email&utm_campaign=STORES%20Feb-March%20&utm_content=Top%2050 to view the full article online.

Sparks and stuff

Does it spark joy? That has been on the minds of consumers for a few years now. But the reasons people buy things and choose to keep them are imbued with more emotions than just joy. Today’s consumer is motivated to purchase due to factors like an affinity for what a brand stands for, whether the brand’s ethos aligns with the shopper and if the product and the storytelling that surround an item are authentic.

Visit https://stores.org/2019/03/04/sparks-and-stuff/ ?utm_medium=STORES%20Weekly&utm_source=Email&utm_campaign=STORES%20Feb-March%20&utm_content=Sparks to view the full article online.

Michaels boosts customer engagement through tailored messaging

Long-term success requires continuous innovation and a drive to make the most of every opportunity. The team at arts and crafts retailer Michaels knew their consumer database, containing around 50 million active customers, was a tremendous asset. In 2017 they decided it was time to do more to capitalize on it.

Visit https://stores.org/2019/03/05/michaels-boosts-customer-engagement-through-tailored-messaging/?utm_medium=STORES%20Weekly&utm_source=Email&utm_campaign=STORES%20Feb-March%20&utm_content=Michaels to view the full article online.

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.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/nrf-nwl/articles/index.asp?aid=547917&issueID=64444 to view the full article online.

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Canadian bookseller Indigo enters the U.S. market

Canadian chain Indigo, which opened its first store in Burlington, Ontario, in 1997, is looking to the United States as a prime market for expansion; the company operates 85 superstores under Chapters and Indigo banners and 120 small-format Coles, Indigospirit and The Book Company stores.

Visit https://stores.org/2019/03/05/canadian-bookseller-indigo-enters-the-u-s-market/%20?utm_medium=STORES%20Weekly&utm_source=Email&utm_campaign=STORES%20Feb-March%20&utm_content=Indigo to view the full article online.

NRF is proud to provide our members with the online Retail Buying Guide to search for trusted vendors, products and services in the retail industry. Our guide is a user-friendly forum designed to bring suppliers and purchasers together. You can search by keyword, location, company name or category. Available whenever you need it, the Retail Buying Guide makes it easy to locate products and professional services geared to the retail industry. Click here to visit the online Retail Buying Guide! To advertise, please contact Sarah Allen for more information.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/nrf-nwl/articles/index.asp?aid=547918&issueID=64444 to view the full article online.

Trends

A time-honored treat gets a tasteful update

If you’re going to have ice cream, you might as well make a moment out of it. Specialty ice cream chain Baskin-Robbins is rolling out a new design concept, starting with a debut in Fresno, Calif., last fall. Among other treats, the fresh “Moments” store design includes a modernized menu with expanded topping station, an interactive wall mural, flexible seating, a garage door and window that can open to the outdoors and new digital menu boards.

Visit https://stores.org/2019/03/06/a-time-honored-treat-gets-a-tasteful-update/ to view the full article online.

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ... chickpeas!

In a completely different twist on the ice cream revolution, Little Bean ice cream offers a dairy alternative that doesn’t carry the fats associated with options like coconut milk — or depend on genetically modified crops like soybeans.The company's chickpeas are billed as organic, gluten-free, sustainably grown and contain no genetically modified organisms; its ice cream flavors have included orange caramel, matcha mint and blackberry basil.

Visit https://stores.org/2019/03/06/i-scream-you-scream-we-all-scream-for-chickpeas/ to view the full article online.

NRF News

How Nordstrom serves customers in a disruptive world

Nordstrom Senior Vice President of Customer Experience Shea Jensen sits down with NRF’s Retail Gets Real podcast team to share how Nordstrom approaches innovation around the customer experience and why innovating in retail isn’t necessarily about being disruptive.

Visit https://nrf.com/blog/nordstrom-sets-standard-customer-experience-again-and-again?utm_medium=STORES%20Weekly&utm_source=Email&utm_campaign=Retail%20Gets%20Real&utm_content=Ep%20108%20Nordstrom to view the full article online.

Brandless on building community

For Brandless, the direct-to-consumer retailer, nurturing a community is key to building a brand. At NRF 2019: Retail's Big Show, Brandless CEO and co-founder Tina Sharkey shared her three steps to building a community that cares.

Visit https://nrf.com/blog/how-purpose-powers-community-brandless?utm_medium=STORES%20Weekly&utm_source=Email&utm_campaign=NRF2019&utm_content=Brandless to view the full article online.

Chasing his dreams led him to Nike

Evan Chisholm received the NRF Foundation’s Ray Greenly Scholarship in 2014. After finishing his studies and a stint at men’s subscription box retailer Bombfell, Chisholm’s persistence, tenacity and passion — coupled with connections made through the NRF Foundation, including gaining Nike’s Kevin Ertell as a mentor — paid off with a dream job as a global associate merchant at Nike.

Visit https://nrffoundation.org/blog/running-towards-success-power-mentorship to view the full article online.

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Cut TCO by 15% on barcode devices

Retailers have relied on rugged handheld devices for over 30 years to boost efficiency and productivity. All along, devices have suffered from failures due to charging contacts that get dirty, corrode, or break. Wireless charging prevents device failure, drastically reducing TCO. An enterprise can easily reduce TCO by 15% or more deploying wireless charging devices.

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National Retail Federation