DailyFinance.comhttp://www.dailyfinance.comDailyFinance.com%http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/BlogURL%/media/feedlogo.gifDailyFinance.comhttp://www.dailyfinance.comen-usCopyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only.Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/Your 2012 Memorial Day Sales Savings Cheat Sheethttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/25/your-2012-memorial-day-sales-savings-cheat-sheet/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/25/your-2012-memorial-day-sales-savings-cheat-sheet/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/25/your-2012-memorial-day-sales-savings-cheat-sheet/#commentsFiled under:

American ShoppingThis Memorial Day weekend, Americans will mark the unofficial start to summer with barbecues, picnics and beach outings. But they'll also indulge in that favorite national pastime -- shopping. And more people look inclined to hit the malls this year than in 2011, according to IBM (IBM) findings, based on analysis of chatter on social networks.

They'll be embarking on more weekend getaways this year, too. The ratio of positive to negative comments about shopping and Memorial Day travel, which IBM calls the "Desire Ratio," is 6.5 to 1 this year, compared to a ratio of 1.3 to 1 in 2011, the data revealed.

For you budget-minded shoppers and travelers, here's some tips to get the biggest bang for your buck this holiday weekend.

Holiday Savings Tips


1. Maximize Coupon Savings

Mining coupons is "particularly important around Memorial Day, as many of the best deals will come from the use of a stacking discount," Lindsay Sakraida, features director for deal site DealNews.com, tells DailyFinance. Stacking is when you combine two or more discounts on the same product during the same transaction, be it a coupon on top of a preexisting sale, or the use of two or more coupons.

DealNews boasts an extensive list of current coupon codes, "and often shaving an extra $10 to $20 off your order total ... is as easy as performing a 30-second coupon code search," she says. You can search the site by product or store."

2. Price Comparison Shop

o. Don't assume that a sales offer is valid both online and in a brick-and-mortar store. "You would think a product's price in-store would match what that vendor charges online, but this is frequently not the case," Sakraida says.

"A retailer can more easily orchestrate a special promotional discount online than it can across all stores, so if you find something you like, check the vendor site -- as well as competitors, when applicable -- to see if you're getting the best price," she says. "Sometimes with items like extremely late season clearance apparel, you'll find a steeper discount in-store.

o. Let search engines like ShopAtHome.com and Bargainist.com do the bargain-hunting leg work for you.

"Shopping around can be daunting to some consumers," Marc Braunstein, CEO of ShopAtHome.com, a source for cash back offers, coupons and deals, tells DailyFinance. "The time required to search for the best possible deal keeps shoppers from comparing prices, even if that means saving them a lot of money." That's where these bargain-finding search engines come in handy, he says. They'll "not only save you time and hassle, but more importantly, the money too," he says.

3. Take Advantage of Cash Back Rewards

Sites like ShopAtHome.com offer special cash-back rewards that can glean shoppers up to 35% savings on purchases from retailers.

ShopAtHome.com boasts that it's the only site that backs up their claim that they have 'the best cash back [offers] on the web, with an 110% guarantee," Braunstein says. If you find a better cash back deal out there, ShopAtHome.com will give you 110% of that discount off your qualified purchase.

4. Take Advantage of Get-Them-While-You-Can Deals

Here are some of the many limited-time only, Memorial Day weekend deals.

o. For some high-end fashion bargains this weekend, check out Nordstrom (JWN), Last Call, Neiman Marcus' outlet chain, Anthropologie (URBN), Italian online fashion retailer Yoox, Club Monaco and Ralph Lauren (RL) for a variety of deals, Tamra Feldman, vice president of marketing for ShopItToMe.com, which bills itself as your personal online shopper and bargain hunter, tells DailyFinance. Many of their sales "will have average discounts of 35% off," she says.

o. For you fashionistas out there who love a deal, ShopItToMe's celebrity stylist Annie Ladino highlighted some of her favorite items for under $25 that should remain on sale throughout the weekend: Lucky Brand, summer straw totes for $24.99; botanical-themed, graphic tees from Express (EXPR) for $27.99; women's denim shorts from Old Navy (GPS) for $15, and round, printed sunglasses from Urban Outfitters for $9.99.

o. What's more, "Now is a great time to take advantage of spring clearance items like gardening supplies and seasonal apparel," Brad Wilson, CEO of coupon and savings site BradsDeals.com, tells DailyFinance. "But don't ignore sales on summer essentials like patio sets and bathing suits. Many will be at the lowest prices you will see until much later in the season."

o. RetailMeNot.com, the biggest provider of online coupon codes, noted these two weekend deals: Kohl's.com is discounting summer essentials -- from swimwear to sandals -- by 20% for shoppers who enter the code SUMMER20. "Plus, get free shipping over $75 -- no code is needed," Trae Bodge, senior writer for RetailMeNot's Insider, the site's online magazine.

o. If you're going camping, Cabelas, marketer of camping, hunting, fishing and outdoor gear, is holding a big sale event this weekend that includes camping-related items.

o. And checkout daily deal site DealFind.com for a random mix of bargains available this weekend, including a 12 month subscription to Rolling Stone magazine with a framed poster, $49; a two-pack of extra large, memory foam pillows for $55; a memory foam dog bed for $30; and an Ultrasonic tooth brush system for $69, a spokesperson says.

5. Don't Forget the Road Trip, Weekend Getaway Savings

o. "Road tripping it? Your smartphone can help you save on gas when it's time to hit the pump," RetailMeNot's Bodge tells DailyFinance. Apps like Gasbuddy guide you to where to buy the least-expensive gas in any given area.

o. If you're planning a day trip to a city by car, search online for discounted parking coupons on sites like Central Parking, the operator of parking facilities, for savings offers available in 50-plus cities, Bodge says.

But you might not need it. "Because street parking can be easier to find on holidays -- and no meter feeding is typically required on the actual holiday -- plan to look for a spot on the street first, and have your coupon as a backup," she says.

o. Tap Memorial Day weekend savings for future summer trips. Scour RetailMeNot.com's travel deals to find coupons on discount travel sites like Travelocity, Orbitz (OWW) and Expedia (EXPE) for savings on weekend packages, rental cars and even theater tickets.

o. You can also save up to 35% on daily, weekly and weekend Budget car rentals by June 30 with Expedia coupons, Bodge says.




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]]>best memorial day salesBestMemorialDaySalesBradsDealscouponsDealfinddealnewsGasBuddyholiday shoppingHolidayShoppingmemorial day dealsMemorialDayDealsShopItToMetravel dealsTravelDealsBarbara ThauFri, 25 May 2012 15:15:00 ESTHow Red and Blue States Split on Green: We Spend Differentlyhttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/24/how-red-and-blue-states-split-on-green-we-spend-differently/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/24/how-red-and-blue-states-split-on-green-we-spend-differently/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/24/how-red-and-blue-states-split-on-green-we-spend-differently/#commentsFiled under:

Money habits"There are no red states or blue states, just the United States," Barack Obama memorably declaimed at the 2004 Democratic National Convention.

In that speech, which instantly thrust the then-U.S. Senate candidate onto the national stage, Obama painted a picture of an America where Republicans and Democrats share more common ground than not.

Politically, that notion now seems questionable, at best -- and it clearly doesn't hold up when it comes to our online shopping patterns. There's a notable divide in the online spending and bill-paying habits of shoppers in conservative and liberal states, according to data released by Billeo.com, which creates apps designed to help consumers save time and money while shopping or paying bills online.

Red States Pay More Bills Online

For one, people in red states pay more of their bills online than those in blue states, and and their overall online bill payments are higher than those of their blue state brethren, Billeo's research found.

Red states cities with the highest online bill payments on an annual, per user basis, include Chandler, Ariz. ($16,448), Arlington Texas ($10,396), Montgomery, Ala. ($9,562), Katy, Texas ($8,159), and Corpus Christi, Texas ($6,995).

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By contrast, Tacoma, Wash., the blue state city with the highest average online bill payments, had an annual per user payment of $11,400 -- $5,400 less than Chandler. Overall, red staters average $7,480 in online bill payments, compared to $7,070 for blue staters.

"There are multiple factors at play here, but the largest seems to be that consumers that live in red states may be more comfortable with online banking and bill paying, and therefore are more likely to pay bills online," Murali Subbarao, CEO of Billeo, tells DailyFinance.

Interesting to note, however: The average size of the individual bills being paid online is higher in blue states.

While red state residents might pay more of their bills online, blue state consumers are slightly bigger e-commerce shoppers. Blue state city Madison, Wash., ranked No. 1 in online spending, with an annual per user spend of $2,243. That's $210 less than the $2,033 annual per user spend in Tucson, Ariz., the red state city with the greatest propensity for online shopping. The average across blue states: $944; in red states: $911.

The reason: "Blue staters seem more comfortable shopping online for higher priced items online," Subbarao suggests.



Red States Buy Video Games, Blue States Buy Books

Red state folks are also buying different stuff than the blue state crowd.

Red states spend 39% more on home improvement, and 16% more on video games, toys and hobbies. Meanwhile, blue states spend 39% more on travel and vacations, and 11% more on books, music and movies.

The purchasing divide likely echoes the lifestyle differences between conservative and liberal shoppers, Subbarao says.

"Based on the numbers we saw, consumers who live in red states are homebodies -- spending more money on things they can do around the house: home improvement, toys and video games to play at home," he says. "While consumers who live in blue states spend more on things that take them away from home and get them out and about, [like] travel and vacations, movies and event tickets."

infographic


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]]>2004 Democratic National ConventionBarack Obamabill payingBilleoBillPayingblue statesBlueStatesconservativese-commerceliberalsliberals conservatives brain differencesLiberalsConservativesBrainDifferencesMurali Subbaraored statesRedStatesshoppersshopping onlineShoppingOnlinespending habitsSpendingHabitsBarbara ThauThu, 24 May 2012 13:05:00 ESTBehind the Spritz: What Really Goes Into a Bottle of $100 Perfumehttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/22/celebrity-perfume-cost-breakdown/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/22/celebrity-perfume-cost-breakdown/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/22/celebrity-perfume-cost-breakdown/#commentsFiled under: ,

PerfumesHow much does that fancy $100-a-bottle department store perfume you wear really cost to make? The answer is one of the retail industry's dirty little secrets -- with good reason. If shoppers got a whiff of the how little is spent on making "the juice," it would be like Toto pulling back the curtain in The Wizard of Oz.

Here's the lowdown: Despite all the flamboyant marketing-speak behind prestige fragrances -- all that talk of floral formulas and gourmand notes -- the value of the actual liquid is roughly equivalent to a large cup of regular coffee. Yep, not even a cappuccino.

And perfume is no outlier in the cosmetics department: When it comes to a host of beauty products, "There's an enormous disparity between the cost of the product and the cost to the consumer, more so than anything else," a former department store CEO told DailyFinance.

"If you bought a laptop that costs $1,000, the laptop might cost $600 to $700 to manufacture, but if you bought a lipstick for $25, it might cost 25 cents to manufacture," he said. "The same holds true for fragrances."

Scent Sells

Fragrances are a big -- and growing -- business.

From January to March alone, department store fragrances generated $501.2 million in sales, up 7% from 2011, with nearly 8.0 million units sold, according to market research firm the NPD Group.

The ex-retail CEO offered DailyFinance a rare glimpse into the breakdown of the costs built into department store prestige fragrances, using an average $100, 3.5 ounce bottle of a "celebrity" perfume as an example. As the cost breakdown is a closely-guarded trade secret (rather like Colonel Sanders' fried chicken recipe), he would only speak on the condition of anonymity.

PerfumeThe Breakdown


Bottle: $6

The perfume bottle itself is a meaningful contributor to the cost of the fragrance, especially as some bottles are veritable sculptures, expensively designed by commissioned artists, the CEO said. Indeed, perfume bottles have a noble history as objets d'art -- to the point that they have been the subject of museum exhibitions.

Packaging: $4

Typically, this includes the bottle's package, as well as collateral material for the department store counter, such as testers and displays "that are all part of an integrated presentation scheme," said the CEO.

Marketing: $8

All the legerdemain that goes into creating a perfume's mystique, particularly for a celebrity-backed fragrance, carries a heavy price tag. The marketing-magic machine includes everything from department store marketing at the point of sale to the media blitz: "scent strips in magazines, outdoor ads on billboards and bus shelters, and TV advertising," the CEO said.

While the retailer and supplier typically split the cost of TV spots, all the other marketing costs are usually paid by the manufacturer.

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But when marketing a fragrance -- as opposed to fashion or accessories -- seeing isn't always believing, Karen Grant, vice president and senior global industry analyst for the NPD Group, tells DailyFinance.

A shopper might instantly respond to the aesthetics of a handbag she sees in the store or in an ad, for example, which can prompt a sale. But before they'll be convinced to make a perfume purchase, consumers must "encounter the scent" via promotional ploys like testers or scent strips in magazines. And all those things jack up marketing costs, she said.

Sales Commission: $6

The sales people at department store beauty counters work on commission, which also figures into the price of the fragrances they sell. Typically, they are paid by the beauty supplier, as opposed to the retailer.

Licensing Fee: $4

When a perfume is a celebrity label, and so many of them are these days, the star gets a royalty for the use of their name, likeness and participation in promoting the product.

IFFManufacturer's Overhead: $15

A big chunk of the perfume price goes toward the manufacturer's corporate overhead -- everything from the salary of the brand's CEO to corporate office expenses. And of course, paying for the chemists who produce the scent is factored in as well, the CEO said.

In the case of a celebrity fragrance, the star or product development gurus articulate their concept. Then companies like International Flavor and Fragrances and Givaudan, often working on contract for the fragrance manufacturer, produce scents based on that input, which then go through a selection process.

The journey from concept to final fragrance is not unlike how a food manufacturer settles on "a recipe for chicken soup," the CEO said.

Manufacturer Profit: $15

This figure is an estimate of what the retailer profits from the fragrance. (Not bad.)

Retailer's Corporate Overhead: $25

This is the same as the manufacturer's corporate overhead, excluding the cost of the chemist.

Retailer's Profit: $15

The is the profit the store generates from the perfume after corporate expenses. (Also not bad.)

And Finally ... The Juice: $2

The actual liquid concentrate, which includes a mixture of distilled water, alcohol and flavorants, is the least valuable part of that bottle of celebrity perfume.

And while the mixture of exotic flavorants can be expensive, "it's introduced in very small concentrations by the brewmeister who created the scent," the CEO said.

Gallery: Top Fragrances of 2011

Women's Top FragrancesWomen's Top FragrancesWomen's Top FragrancesWomen's Top FragrancesWomen's Top Fragrances

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]]>celebrity perfumeCelebrityPerfumechanelEntertainmentfrangrancesGivaudan SAhow perfume is madeHowPerfumeIsMadejustin bieber perfumeJustinBieberPerfumemarketingNPD Groupperfumeprice of perfumePriceOfPerfumetaylor swift perfumeTaylorSwiftPerfumewhat it costsWhatItCostsBarbara ThauTue, 22 May 2012 14:10:00 ESTDespite One Bad Quarter, Don't Discount J.C. Penney's Chanceshttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/18/jcpenney-reinvention-earnings-analysis/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/18/jcpenney-reinvention-earnings-analysis/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/18/jcpenney-reinvention-earnings-analysis/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

JCPenneyNancy Pietschnig wasn't at all excited when she first heard about J.C. Penney's (JCP) plan to ditch most of their hundreds of annual sale events, dump their coupons, and just offer lower prices every day, with only a handful of regularly spaced sales a year. The patient care technician from Lodi, N.J., likes her sales, and her coupons, too.

The strategy -- outlined in January by the retailer's new CEO Ron Johnson -- was designed to revive Penney's sluggish business and redefine department store shopping. They would eliminate the rampant discounting events that taught shoppers to distrust their prices, and that have increasingly led them to wait for final clearance sales to buy.

The retail and investment communities have been watching Johnson with bated breath, to see if the man many regard as a kind of merchant prince could pull it off.

So far, the jury is still out: Penney's first quarter sales tanked.

Down, But Not Done

Due to Johnson's stellar pedigree, the industry isn't giving up on him yet. The man who led Apple's (AAPL) highly successful venture into retail stores, and prior to that, helped burnish Target's (TGT) image as a high-end discounter with exclusive lines from upscale designers like Missoni and Jean Paul Gaultier, will be given more time to work his magic on Penney's.

And other retailers have already begun following Penney's lead. In March, regional department store chain Stein Mart, announced its plans to slash coupons by 50% and return to its everyday low price roots.

Nancy PietschnigBut Pietschnig, who was willing to give Penney's new "fair and square" pricing strategy a try, is unimpressed. Worse, she's also skeptical that she's getting a good deal.

"They're saying, 'no more sales,' they're going to give me a rock-bottom price as soon as I walk into a store," said Pietschnig, who spoke to DailyFinance back in March about her penchant for shopping department store clearance racks.

But during a visit to the store the following week, "the stuff was even cheaper -- what the heck was that?" she said. "They made this whole big thing about having the cheap prices from the beginning ... It's confusing, and I don't want to even bother with them."

Based on Penney's quarterly earnings report this week, Pietschnig wasn't alone in her feelings.

New Pricing Strategy Turns Off Shoppers

Store traffic at J.C. Penney sank 10% last quarter, in part because shoppers didn't get the retailer's new pricing strategy, Johnson told investors and press this week during a meeting in New York City to review its earnings results.

Johnson also outlined the next phase of Penney's "seismic" reinvention strategy -- which sounded a lot like adding more upscale, hip products a la Target, but in a department store setting -- while conceding that the turnaround would be tougher than management had anticipated. But he also stressed that Penney's makeover is a work in progress, and the chain is on the right track.

Still, during the first quarter ended April 28, Penney posted a $55 million net loss. Sales fell 20.1%, to $3.15 billion from a year ago, while same-store sales dove 18.9%.

Penney's sales especially sank over the weekends, when heavy coupon users like Pietschnig hit the stores.

While shoppers were entertained by the retailer's new cheeky print and broadcast ad campaign, "it's not doing the work" of communicating the new strategy, Johnson said.

JCPenney

To that end, Penney is tweaking its ads to hammer away its value proposition -- 40% lower prices every day, monthly sales and clearance sales Thursday and Friday -- with ads that spell out the savings and feature copy like, "Do the math."

The retailer underestimated just how much consumers are addicted to coupons and sales events, which Penney executives kept referring to as "drugs" from which shoppers need to be weaned. "We've got to learn to drive traffic in new ways, the old way was with a coupon and a sale," Johnson said.

On the bright side, customer surveys showed that shoppers are warming up to Penney's changes, he said. "Customers love what they see when they come to the store."


Target-like Merchandise in a Department Store Setting?

Beyond the change in pricing, by this autumn, nearly half of Penney's merchandise will be different.

The chain, which announced plans in January to reorganize its store floors into 100 specialty shops -- including a massive Martha Stewart home store -- will also introduce exclusive, edgy fare to fix its struggling home furnishings business -- a clear sign that Johnson is using the lessons he learned during his tenure at Target.

The new lines will include:
  • home products from Michael Graves, the architect whose housewares line at Target was the first of the discounter's now-famous trendy designer collections;
  • a home line from Sir Terence Conran, the British retailer/restaurateur whose modernist, high-brow stores are iconic in the world of home design;
  • a shop from Bodum, the contemporary Danish kitchenware company;
  • and a shop from Jonathan Adler, a hipster designer known for his cheeky, vibrant home products.
JCPenney
In classic Target fashion, Graves, Conran and Adler are not totally household names, but each brings to the table both design cachet and a cool factor.

Elsewhere in the store, Penney's soon-to-arrive fashion and accessories lines reflect a high-end push. They include a girl's clothing line from designer Cynthia Rowley (another Target collaborator); a collection from designer Georgina Chapman of Marchesa, a high-end brand that's a regular on the runway and at red-carpet events; and watches from tony Tourneau.

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And don't be surprised to see food and beverage shop concepts integrated into the store, Johnson said.

"The goal here is to reach younger, newer shoppers," Penney's President Michael Francis told the audience.

But is this what shoppers want from a chain that has traditionally played to the sensibilities of Middle America? Analysts -- who were largely unfazed by Penney's first quarter declines -- seem to think so.

Although "their numbers were in the ditch ... I'm optimistic," Craig Johnson, president of retail consultancy Customer Growth Partners, told DailyFinance, saying the shop concepts are the right strategy.

Citi analyst Deborah Weinswig agreed. "We do not believe that J.C. Penney's disappointing first quarter results signify that the company's transformation is off track," she said, in a research note. Weinswig was bullish on the "significant product newness on the way," noting Penney's 28 brand introductions and relaunches.

"While the first quarter was more challenging than anticipated, management has already begun to tweak its marketing and pricing to improve traffic," she said.

Stay tuned.



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]]>BodumCraig Johnsonfair and square pricingFairAndSquarePricingFinanceJ. C. Penneyjc penney analysisJCPenney earningsJcPenneyAnalysisJcpenneyEarningsJonathan AdlerJonathanAdlermartha stewartMarthaStewartMichael GravesMichaelGravesno couponsno salesNoCouponsNoSalesRon JohnsonSir Terence ConranSirTerenceConranTarget CorporationBarbara ThauFri, 18 May 2012 10:35:00 ESTWeird-Mart: Tales of the Bizarre from the Walmart Aisleshttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/16/walmart-weird-tales-bizarre-gallery/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/16/walmart-weird-tales-bizarre-gallery/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/16/walmart-weird-tales-bizarre-gallery/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Naked man in WalmartA 47-year-old man was bitten by a rattlesnake in the outdoor garden department of a Walmart (WMT) store in Lewiston, Idaho, this week. The rattlesnake latched onto the man's hand, prompting him to scream, shake the snake loose, and then stomp it to death.

A peculiar incident, yes, but hardly the first odd thing to occur at one of the retailer's 3,878 U.S. locations: Strange things seem to happen in Walmart stores all the time.

True, Walmart is the nation's biggest retailer, which gives it plenty of opportunities to play host to weird happenings, but even given that, the stores seem to exist in a parallel, Twilight Zone universe where such odd episodes are bound to ensue. One can almost picture Rod Serling in a blue Walmart vest, suavely greeting customers by the sliding doors, and introducing the strange tales about to unfold.

Here are a few of the bizarre incidents that have played out at a Walmart store.

Gallery: At Walmart Stores, 'Bizzaro World' Episodes Unfold

Naked Man Shoplifts ... Socks?Welcome to 'Meth-Mart'The Phony Million-Dollar BillSink Your Teeth Into ThisWill 'Moo' For Milk


Police: Naked Man Steals Socks From Walmart




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]]>Entertainmentmeth labsMethLabsnaked shopper arrestedNakedShopperArrestedPeople of walmartPeopleOfWalmartrattlesnakeRod Serlingshopliftingsnake bitesSnakeBitestoilet pranksToiletPrankswalmartwalmart weddingWalmartWeddingweird newsWeirdNewsBarbara ThauWed, 16 May 2012 15:15:00 ESTTarget Makes a Test Run at Trendy Sportswear Biz with C9 Storehttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/12/target-new-c9-champion-store-trendy-sportswear/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/12/target-new-c9-champion-store-trendy-sportswear/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/12/target-new-c9-champion-store-trendy-sportswear/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Target StoresTarget (TGT) will make a play for fitness enthusiasts with the fall launch of an activewear store based on its C9 by Champion brand, marking the chain's first spin-off retail concept.

With C9 Active Apparel, Target is dipping its discount-store toe into the booming athleticwear market occupied by expanding high-end retailers like Lululemon Athletica (LULU) and Gap's Athleta chain (GPS).

The 3,000-square-foot C9 store will open on Oct. 14 in a ground floor space in San Francisco's Metreon Shopping Center, where a 100,000 square foot CityTarget (the discounter's urban format) will also debut. But C9 won't bear the Target name, nor feature the iconic Bullseye logo.

San Francisco, with its high proportion of fitness-minded residents, is a natural venue for C9, Jessica Deed, a Target spokeswoman, told DailyFinance.

The store will offer a full assortment of athletic apparel and gear for men and women, including everything from running shorts and yoga pants to sports bras, water bottles and yoga mats. While pricing information for the new store isn't yet available, items in the C9 by Champion line at Target currently retail for under $50, "with the majority of pieces available for less than $30," Deed says.

By contrast, a trip to a Lululemon in New York City turned up little merchandise selling for less than $50. The product mix included items like women's yoga pants for $86, a sports bra for $48 and men's cycling tees for $54.

With C9, Target could be angling to differentiate itself from retailers like Lululemon and Athleta, and brands such as Under Armour, by offering a lower priced activewear option, Tim Shimotakahara, vice president of investment banking for D.A. Davidson & Co., tells DailyFinance.

Target active apparel

Still, the C9 move is somewhat surprising for the chic-cheaper discounter. Why would Target, the nation's only mass-merchant couturier -- known for its high-profile brand partnerships with upscale designers like Missoni and Jean Paul Gaultier -- pick athleticwear as its new retail concept? Because it sells, Deeds explained. "C9 has really grown into one of Target's most popular brands."

What's more, activewear is "a hot, growing market that has significantly higher profit margins than many other product categories," Shimotakahara says. Active outdoor apparel alone, excluding team sports related garments, generates an estimated $3.6 billion in sales, he says, citing figures from the Outdoor Industry Association.

And Americans' increasingly informal lifestyle is creating a stronger demand for fitness fashion. "You see people wearing activewear in all different social situations," he says.

While Deeds said there are no plans per se to expand the C9 concept beyond that one store, industry analysts are betting that if it does well, Target will do just that.

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"Target has obviously paid attention to the success of specialty retailers like Lululemon and Athleta, and the same concept at mass price points could be a winner," said Richard Seesel, a principal at Retailing in Focus LLC, in an online forum about C9 on RetailWire.

The store's boutique size "also follows the trend of 'smaller is better' relative to the massive scale of sporting goods stores like Dick's and The Sports Authority, where fitness-wear is a small part of the assortment," he said. C9 "has a lot of growth opportunity across the country."

But one analyst wondered if by going with the Champion label, Target is banking on a brand that's past its sell date, particularly when it has to vie with the trendy image of stores like Lululemon, for one.

"Champion doesn't have that cachet," said the analyst.


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]]>activewearathletic wearAthleticWearc9 by championC9ByChampionfashionFinancejean paul gaultierJeanPaulGaultiermissoninew storeNewStoreretailersSan FranciscoSports Authoritysportsweartarget c9 storeTarget CorporationTargetC9StoreUnder ArmourBarbara ThauSat, 12 May 2012 17:15:00 ESTKeeping Up with the Baby Joneses: How Mommy Guilt Makes Us Overspendhttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/11/mommy-guilt-overspending-baby-gear-peer-pressure/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/11/mommy-guilt-overspending-baby-gear-peer-pressure/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/11/mommy-guilt-overspending-baby-gear-peer-pressure/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Baby stroller envyCatherine Donaldson-Evans has stroller envy brought on, in part, by mommy guilt.

The new mother, who lives on Manhattan's Upper West Side, pushes her 5-month-old daughter in a stroller that's well made, but nonetheless,"'70s looking," she says.

Meanwhile, "everybody in New York has these very fancy designer strollers," says Donaldson-Evans, senior lifestyle editor of The Stir, a parenting and lifestyle blog from CafeMom.

"I feel a little guilty that my daughter is riding around in a not-as-glamorous-looking, pretty stroller," Donaldson-Evans says. "I don't want her to look back at her baby pictures and ask what the heck I was pushing her around in."

These days, the social pressure to outfit your bundle of joy in trendy, upscale baby gear is intense for new moms -- especially in competitive cities like New York, Donaldson-Evans says.


Gallery: Baby Gear: Top of the Line vs. Cheap Chic
gallery

"When you enter the mom race for the first time, you can certainly feel as though you need to buy all these top-of-the-line baby products," she says. "Frankly, I don't have the money to do that."

And while Donaldson-Evans doesn't necessarily give in to the pressure, the feeling is still palpable. "It's like the peer pressure thing that we did in high school."

She's not alone in her mommy guilt.

New moms nationwide feel an "overwhelming" pressure to overspend on products for their baby, even as they curtail spending in other areas of their lives due to the still shaky economy, according to the national Brand New Mom study by Kelton Research.

The study of more than 1,900 moms revealed that when it comes to making purchasing decisions for their baby, emotions often trump practicality: Even when it has been proven that a high-profile brand offers no meaningful benefit over significantly less expensive options, new moms are often inclined to opt for the pricier item, the survey revealed.

What's more, more than half of expectant first-time moms (58%) said they ruminate incessantly about what products they need to buy their babies on a daily basis, while 37% of the moms surveyed said they feel guilty when they can't afford a particular baby product.

DailyFinance posted an informal poll question on popular pregnancy and new baby website TheBump.com, and the responses from its readers echoed those findings: 53.8% of women with babies under 3 months old, and 50% of women with babies 3 months to 6 months old, said they felt pressured to overspend on baby products, the poll revealed.



Less For Mommy, More For Baby

According to Kelton Research, 59% of moms surveyed said they were stressed about their personal financial situation. And while three-quarters said they'd cut back on eating out, entertainment and buying clothing for themselves, only 13% said they applied cost-saving measures for their impending or new baby.

That certainly holds true in Donaldson-Evans' household, where new baby related expenses like daycare costs have crimped the family's budget. "We had to cut way back on going out to eat, what we spend on food in general, and on ourselves," she said. By contrast, "We're doing the best for the baby."

That comes as little surprise, Nancy Lee, president of MyRegistry.com, a universal gift registry platform that works with more than 2,000 retailers -- from national chains to baby boutiques -- tells DailyFinance.

"Whether the economy is up or down, moms would be more apt to buy something expensive [for their kids] than for themselves -- especially when you're having your first baby, and you feel that everything has to be perfect, you feel better if you have the best high chair, the best stroller," she says.

That notion is increasingly being informed by a 24/7 cycle of brand advertising, chatter on mommy blogs and celebrity news that fetishizes the stars, their kids and all their accoutrements. The constant barrage of advertising influenced 35% of the moms surveyed to spend more than they planned on their first baby, Kelton's study revealed.

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"The marketing of baby products has changed to rival the marketing of luxury goods like clothing and handbags," Lee says.

The impulse to buy top-of-the-line baby products is reflected on the lists of tony products moms of all income levels place on their baby registries, Lee has noticed.

They want what the stars have. When celebrity magazines featured Angelina Jolie wheeling around one of her kids in a Stokke Xplory stroller, "sales for the stroller went through the roof," he recalls.

Chances are, you don't have a Brangelina level bank account. If that's the case, and you'd like to cut back on the mommy guilt overspending, check out this gallery of eight trendy status-symbol baby products, matched with perfectly respectable -- yet much lower priced -- alternatives, courtesy of MyRegistry.com.

Gallery: Baby Gear: Top of the Line vs. Cheap Chic

StrollersCar SeatsHigh ChairsDiaper BagsBaby Bottles



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]]>Angelina Joliebabybaby gear brandsbaby strollerBabyGearBrandsBabyStrollerbest baby buysBestBabyBuysCafeMomcost of childrenCostOfChildrencribshigh chairsHighChairsmom guiltMomGuiltmommy guiltMommyGuiltMyRegistry.comNancy LeeNew Yorkprice of babiesPriceOfBabiesTheBump.comtrendy baby clothingTrendyBabyClothingBarbara ThauFri, 11 May 2012 11:00:00 ESTHottest Mother's Day Gifts Revealed: 7 Big Chains Tell Allhttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/08/hottest-mothers-day-gifts-revealed-7-big-chains-tell-all/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/08/hottest-mothers-day-gifts-revealed-7-big-chains-tell-all/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/08/hottest-mothers-day-gifts-revealed-7-big-chains-tell-all/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Mother's day giftsIt's nearly time to celebrate the woman who birthed you, endured countless sleepless nights when you were a wee little person on account of those 3 a.m. feedings, and, then somehow, later managed to tolerate your assorted teenage shenanigans.

And this Mother's Day, it appears that U.S. consumers will be showing their appreciation even more than last year -- at least spending-wise: Consumers plan to spend an average $152.52 on Mom, up 8% from 2011, according to a BIGInsight consumer spending survey by The National Retail Federation.

If you're still scratching your head over what to buy Mom, here's a rundown of some of the hot sellers so far this Mother's Day at seven big national chains.

Gallery: Hottest Mother's Day Gifts Revealed

Ann TaylorLoftZalesSearsMacy's


Mothers Day 2012










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]]>Ann KleinAnn TaylorcanningCrate & BarrelEntertainmentfashionsGoldie HawnjewelryKate Hudsonkitchenwaremacysmothermothers daymothers day gift ideasMothersDayMothersDayGiftIdeasRalph LaurenSearsTarget CorporationBarbara ThauTue, 08 May 2012 15:30:00 ESTOnline Shoppers' Big Peeve: It's Such a Pain to Payhttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/05/online-shoppers-big-peeve-its-such-a-pain-to-pay/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/05/online-shoppers-big-peeve-its-such-a-pain-to-pay/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/05/online-shoppers-big-peeve-its-such-a-pain-to-pay/#commentsFiled under: ,

ordering onlineWhat really aggravates people about shopping online? Believe it or not, it's that it isn't easy enough to pay.

Yes, a majority of U.S. shoppers surveyed recently cited having to enter payment, billing and shipping information as a major nuisance of buying on the web.

Instead, 58% of online shoppers said they'd rather safely store their account information once, in a single place that can be easily accessed no matter where they're shopping online, according to the recent MasterCard survey conducted by Harris Interactive, reflecting responses from 2,229 shoppers.

It's clearly a big gripe. We're so irritated by having to enter (and reenter) all our digits that nearly one out of four shoppers abandon their virtual shopping carts at least once a month before completing their purchase, respondents said.

They do so "for a variety of reasons, including the length of the checkout process, or difficulty entering payment and billing information," Geoff Iddison, group executive of e-commerce and mobile for MasterCard, tells DailyFinance.

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No surprise, smartphones only make matters worse. "These difficulties are amplified when a consumer is asked to complete these steps on mobile devices with smaller screens and hard-to-read text fields," he says.

So merchants are mulling ways to streamline the checkout process and help convert browsers into buyers, Iddison says.

Downloadable password management software and apps like LastPass and Dashlane are designed to appeal to online shoppers' impatient with data entry.

Dashlane, which launched last month, highlights its ability to expedite the online checkout process. The free software enables users to store online credentials, such as logins and passwords to websites, personal data, such as name, address and phone number, and financial information, like credit card and debit card numbers, for faster form-filling and auto-logins at any retailers' e-commerce site.

With Dashlane, an online shopper's personal information is filled in quickly and automatically at a retailer's checkout screen, "so that a transaction that usually takes several minutes happens instead in seconds," a Dashlane spokesman tells DailyFinance.

Users' personal data is locally encrypted on their own computer, accessible via a "master password" which no one but the user has access to, and which isn't even stored on Dashlane's servers, the company says.

Sounds like just what all those frustrated online shoppers are looking for. But only time will tell if password-management tools catch on, or result in fewer abandoned shopping carts floating around in cyberspace.





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]]>abandoned shopping cartsAbandonedShoppingCartsauto-fill managerAuto-fillManagerDashlaneecommerceFinanceHarris InteractiveJagexLastPassMasterCardonline shoppingOnlineShoppingpassword-managementshopping with smartphonesShoppingWithSmartphonesBarbara ThauSat, 05 May 2012 01:30:00 ESTCould a Fake Coach Purse Land You in Jail? Anti-Counterfeiters Target Consumershttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/03/could-a-fake-coach-purse-land-you-in-jail-anti-counterfeiters-t/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/03/could-a-fake-coach-purse-land-you-in-jail-anti-counterfeiters-t/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/03/could-a-fake-coach-purse-land-you-in-jail-anti-counterfeiters-t/#commentsFiled under: , ,

DesignsFauxReal.comThat bootleg Prada bag you proudly dangle from your arm -- the one you scored on Canal Street in New York City, that hotbed of knockoffs? Someday soon, you could be fined for buying that fake -- or worse, thrown in jail.

Anti-counterfeiting crusaders are aiming at a new target: you, the consumer.

Admittedly, they'd rather appeal to your better nature first -- or even your guilt. Organizations that fight knockoffs are now taking their message on the many ills of counterfeiting directly to shoppers, focusing on dangers ranging from the health hazards of phony pharmaceuticals and toothpaste to the risk of having your identity stolen by the vendors of such illegitimate goods.

But, taking a cue from Scared Straight, some in the anti-counterfeiting world are also pushing to criminalize buying knockoff goods, threatening ordinary consumers with fines, or even trips to the slammer.

Anti-Counterfeiters Take On Street Vendors, Online Fraudsters

It's no secret that counterfeit items like fake Gucci bags and phony Rolex watches, mostly made in China, have been sold in tourist areas, flea markets and strip malls across the country for ages.

But the addition of rogue websites to the mix in recent years has catapulted the backstreet knockoff biz into a $650 billion global industry.

DesignsFauxReal.com

Those rogue websites masquerading as legitimate are hard to trace: Online sellers enjoy "virtual anonymity," said Kristina Montanaro, associate counsel and director of special programs for the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition.

As a result, even when they are discovered and shut down, sites purveying phony merchandise "regenerate so quickly that it feels like a game of Whac-a-Mole," she said during a panel discussion at the Fordham Fashion Law Institute's Symposium, "Fashion = Art + Commerce," held in New York last month.

That forum, "Beyond Whac-a-Mole: New Initiatives in Intellectual Property Enforcement," focused on the latest methods being tried to stop the online counterfeiters.

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For instance, the IACC is working with major credit card companies and payment processing networks to block counterfeit websites from processing consumers' payments. Meanwhile, MarkMonitor, which provides brand-safeguarding services, has been working to shut down rogue websites by reporting them to the companies that run search engines.

For example, MarkMonitor identified 239 websites purchasing branded keywords for search ads, and then passing off knockoffs of a certain high-end jewelry brand as the real thing.

"We were able to report those advertisers to the search engines and remove their ads," Te Smith, vice president of communications for MarkMonitor, who was on the panel, told DailyFinance. "The sites were generating almost 1 million visits a year, visits that should have been going to the client's website, but were being stolen by the counterfeiters."

Offline, the Department of Homeland Security has been targeting flea markets across the country where phony merchandise is sold, unleashing a series of raids that have resulted in the seizure of large quantities in counterfeit goods.

Shaming Shoppers

But taking aim at the shoppers who purchase fakes -- who until now, have mostly been cast as unsuspecting dupes -- represents a new tactic.

By directing their tsk-tsk message to consumers, anti-counterfeiting activists acknowledge that many buyers of knockoff merchandise know all too well that they're getting a fake. Indeed, it's this group "that can be the most difficult to reach," Montanaro says.

For its part, the IACC has launched DesignsFauxReal.com, a consumer awareness campaign on the harms caused by counterfeit goods.

DesignsFauxReal.com

The site takes a tongue-in-cheek approach, sporting a design that evokes the look of a knockoff website, with taglines like, "Free identity theft with every purchase."

"A lot of people don't realize [that when you buy from a rogue website], you're handing your card information over to hardened criminals, so you're at the risk of identity theft," Montanaro says. The IACC is also warning shoppers that buying from counterfeit sites can hurt their credit score.

DesignsFauxReal.com

Teens See No Moral Problem with Buying Fakes

The International Trademark Association is also unveiling a consumer awareness push this month.

Dubbed "UnReal," the campaign targets 14- to 18-year-olds with the message that counterfeit goods can imperil your health and safety, are linked to organized crime, hurt the economy, and can even hurt your street cred.

INTA will spread its message in classrooms around the country and through social media.

"There's a big opportunity to educate the public on counterfeiting," said INTA's Candace Li during the symposium.

The campaign will also raise awareness that counterfeiters don't just knock off luxury goods, but things like prescription medications. And phony pharmaceuticals can "lead to death," the Unreal campaign's Facebook page pointedly notes.

Other counterfeit products that pose health and safety concerns include items like Christmas lights and brake pads, as well as counterfeit toothpaste, which can contain toxic chemicals, and has been known to end up on the shelves of legitimate retailers, Nancy Prager, a Washington-based intellectual property lawyer, told DailyFinance following the symposium.


The INTA campaign also highlights the link between buying counterfeits and funding an industry tied to organized crime, terrorism and child labor, Li says.

Still, the association faces an uphill battle convincing those teens who like to impress their friends by flashing facsimiles of expensive trendy gear not to buy knockoffs.

DesignsFauxReal.com

In teen focus groups organized by INTA, many young people revealed that they'd knowingly purchased product knockoffs, and "didn't find a moral obligation not to buy counterfeits," Li said.

The challenge with selling an anti-counterfeit message to young shoppers is that it involves preaching to a generation that's grown up downloading music for free, and tends to have "a huge sense of entitlement," Smith added.

But despite that, INTA's research suggests that a consumer awareness campaign could change their minds. Young people who've been educated about the social and economic damage of counterfeit goods will think twice about buying them, INTA found.

Cracking Down on Canal Street

New York City shoppers may soon have a stronger reason to think twice before snapping up a pair of phony UGG boots in Chinatown.

Taking a page from the playbooks of Italy and France, where it's illegal to buy counterfeit goods, City Councilwoman Margaret Chin has introduced new legislation that would make it a Class A misdemeanor to purchase knockoffs in New York City, which has long been a major hub for fakes. The penalties would be fines as high as $1,000, or up to a year in jail.

The legislation would empower police to issue summons to people caught buying counterfeit goods, said Councilwoman Chin in a press statement.

"The bottom line is counterfeiters have to sell to do their job, and we need a law in place that punishes buyers for supporting this illegal trade," she said. It's "smart crime fighting."

Gallery: Award-Winning Fakes
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Chin's office hopes to get the bill passed by late 2013. If she's successful, it could spark similar legislative moves across the nation, experts say. Once there's a precedent in a major city like New York, "it's easy for other cities to enact similar legislation," Kelly Magee, director of communication for Councilwoman Chin's office, told DailyFinance.

But industry experts aren't necessarily sold on the idea.

"Arresting people: I don't know if that's great PR for your brand," Montanaro said. "And while it may be well-intentioned, it presents some practical difficulties,"she told DailyFinance.

For one, the law would be tough to enforce. "It would require the government to prove that the consumer 'knowingly' purchased counterfeit goods. The problem is that knowledge can be difficult to prove," she said. "And combined with the limited resources of law enforcement, this presents some concerns for us."

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]]>Canal Streetcounterfeit goodsCounterfeitGoodsfake CoachFakeCoachGucciHomeland SecurityIACCIntellectual PropertyIntellectualPropertyInternational Anti-Counterfeiting CoalitionInternational Trademark AssociationInternationalAnti-counterfeitingCoalitionInternationalTrademarkAssociationknockoffNew York CityPradaRolexBarbara ThauThu, 03 May 2012 12:00:00 ESTOnline and Unbanked? Walmart.com Lets You Pay With Cashhttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/30/online-and-unbanked-walmart-com-lets-you-pay-with-cash/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/30/online-and-unbanked-walmart-com-lets-you-pay-with-cash/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/30/online-and-unbanked-walmart-com-lets-you-pay-with-cash/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Walmart online cashIf you don't have a bank account, Walmart wants your business.

In recent months, the world's largest retailer has expanded its inexpensive check cashing service, made it easy for the unbanked to cash their tax refund checks, and given them access to plastic with its cheap prepaid debit cards.

Now, Walmart (WMT) wants to make shopping online simpler for the many Americans who don't have a credit card or checking account by giving customers the option of paying in cash for online orders.

Via the "Pay with Cash" program, launched last week, shoppers can visit Walmart.com place an order and, during the online checkout process, select the cash option and their shipping preference. The customer then has 48 hours to pay for the order at any Walmart store or at a Walmart Market, its small-format subsidiary.

The program gives the unbanked access to the hundreds of thousands of items Walmart.com offers that aren't always available in stores, among them baby products, health and beauty items, toys, home decor, electronics, home appliances and more, the company says.

Pay with Cash, which clearly targets the retailer's core audience, is being launched as Walmart works to re-emphasize its value message, which has gotten muddled in recent years, and expand its mix of low-price merchandise.

According to the FDIC, one in four U.S. households is "unbanked or underbanked," meaning its members either don't have a bank account or credit card, or have limited banking options, so they mostly pay for purchases in cash, Walmart said in a statement.

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"However, many of [these consumers] are online, with 81% of the unbanked and 63% of the underbanked having Internet access."

Walmart says the program also targets shoppers who are hesitant to pay for their purchases online. The majority of transactions at the chain's stores are paid for in cash or with a cash equivalent, such as a debit card.

Some industry analysts said the Pay with Cash program could become a valuable service to cash-strapped shoppers, akin to layaway.

"This may be a surprising success as it taps into an untapped e-commerce market of the unbanked," said Ed Dunn, founder of Stealth Operation, on RetailWire's online forum on the topic.

"What I love about this is that it is so counter to the consensus about a cashless society," said Joel Rubinson, president of Rubinson Partners, during the forum. "It is bold, and I think Walmart is right to try."


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]]>bad creditBadCreditcheck cashingCheckCashingDebit CardsDebitCardsFinanceInternet accesslow-incomeonline shoppingOnlineShoppingpay with cashPayWithCashprepaid debit cardsPrepaidDebitCardsunbankedwalmartwalmart.comBarbara ThauMon, 30 Apr 2012 10:25:00 ESTAmazon Works to Perfect the Art of the Daily Dealhttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/27/amazon-works-to-perfect-the-art-of-the-daily-deal/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/27/amazon-works-to-perfect-the-art-of-the-daily-deal/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/27/amazon-works-to-perfect-the-art-of-the-daily-deal/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Amazon.comThe problem with most daily deal sites is that the bargains you're offered aren't necessarily the ones you want. That's where Amazon (AMZN) thinks it can gain an advantage over rivals like Groupon (GRPN) and others.

Amazon's daily deal arm, Amazon Local, is now leveraging the retailer's signature product recommendation technology with the launch this week of a Deal Preferences dashboard that allows shoppers to personalize the bargain offers they receive from the site, according to All Things Digital.

Users will be able to log into their Amazon customer profile to indicate what they like and dislike, and update their preferences on a deal page. Shoppers can tell Amazon if they want to get offers on a variety of goods and services, like clothing, restaurants and makeup --- or not.

Amazon.com

"Amazon is now fixing [what] so many deals sites have been doing wrong - personalization," says Kenneth Wisnefski, founder and CEO of Webimax, which develops online marketing strategies for retailers such as Aéropostale (ARO) and Sam's Club (WMT). "Consumers' number one complaint is that they are blitzed too often with deals that they do not care about."

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The move just might give the online giant an edge over the plethora of group buying sites that have flooded the market, from originator Groupon to new credit card entrants like MasterCard (MA) and American Express (AXP).

The Deal Preferences dashboard is actually bringing something new to the daily deal shopper, Brad Wasz, chief operating officer of CouponTrade.com, a reseller of daily deal offers and gift cards, tells DailyFinance. "Having the user create customer profiles and tapping into their interests in specific categories is more effective than what's currently being offered elsewhere," he says. "When these preferences are set up without the user performing any actions, it will be a game changer."

Groupon, are you listening?




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]]>amazonamazon dealamazon dealsamazon.comAmazonDealAmazonDealsamexDaily dealDaily Dealsdaily deals siteDailyDealDailyDealsDailyDealsSiteDeal of the daydeal of the day siteDealOfTheDayDealOfTheDaySitegrouponmastercardproduct recommendationsProductRecommendationsBarbara ThauFri, 27 Apr 2012 18:15:00 ESTWalmart Bribery Scandal: How Ethical Are the Stores You Shop?http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/26/walmart-bribery-scandal-raises-the-question-how-ethical-are-the/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/26/walmart-bribery-scandal-raises-the-question-how-ethical-are-the/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/26/walmart-bribery-scandal-raises-the-question-how-ethical-are-the/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Walmart ScandalThe Walmart (WMT) bribery scandal has shined a harsh spotlight on corporate misdeeds.

A media firestorm erupted following allegations this week that the world's biggest retailer's Mexican division bribed government officials to secure building permits in the country, as reported in The New York Times.

But do shoppers really care about the integrity and moral compass of the stores they shop? Apparently, they do -- and increasingly so, says Carol Cone, managing director of brand and corporate citizenship for Edelman, the public relations firm. "In a world of radical transparency and 24/7 instant communications, what a company stands for and how it behaves is more important than ever," Cone told DailyFinance.

Edelman's goodpurpose study -- which explored consumers' attitudes about their expectations of brands and companies' commitment to social issues -- revealed, for one, that 87% of American consumers surveyed think businesses need to place at least as much weight on society's interests as they do on business interests.

And as the Internet has opened up seemingly limitless shopping options, consumers turned off by a firm's corporate behavior can now "easily protest by shifting their spending dollars elsewhere," says Brian Schaffer, vice president of mergers and acquisitions and crisis communications for CJP Communications, a public relations and investor relations firm.

While one can never really know the possible shenanigans brewing behind the scenes at any given company, there are ways to probe the policies and track record of your favorite stores and brands to shed light on questions like: What are a company's business ethics? Is there a history of corporate improprieties? What's their track record on issues like labor and human rights or the environment? Does the company do right by their employees, the communities they serve and consumers? And are their political leanings in line with mine?

If you subscribe to the theory that we all vote with our dollars, everyday consumers can consult these eight sources (cited by Cone and others) to vet the brands they buy and the stores they shop.

Gallery: Consumer Confidence - Sites To Help You Vet The Stores You Shop

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]]>business ethicsBusinessEthicsconsumer confidenceconsumer reportsconsumer spendingConsumerConfidenceConsumerReportsConsumerSpendingCorporate governancecorporate malfeasenceCorporateGovernanceCorporateMalfeasencewalmartWalmart briberyWalmartBriberyBarbara ThauThu, 26 Apr 2012 17:15:00 EST'Buy Me!' 7 Ways Stores Get You to Make an Impulse Purchasehttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/26/buy-me-7-ways-stores-get-you-to-make-an-impulse-purchase/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/26/buy-me-7-ways-stores-get-you-to-make-an-impulse-purchase/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/26/buy-me-7-ways-stores-get-you-to-make-an-impulse-purchase/#commentsFiled under:

Cake popsRetailers rely on a host of tactics to get you to purchase stuff you don't want, don't need and never intended to buy.

And their ploys often work: 9 out of 10 shoppers make impulse purchases, buying items that weren't on their shopping lists, according to a recent survey by The Checkout, an ongoing shopper behavior study conducted by retail branding firm The Integer Group.

Retail displaysImpulse buys are a bona fide profit center for retailers, and we're not just talking about the tchotchkes and sweets, from plastic bangles to jelly beans, often planted near the cash registers along the checkout line.

DailyFinance spoke to retail experts, including a few former senior merchants from some of the biggest chains, for an insider take on ways stores induce you to buy -- often so subtly that you don't even know it. See the gallery below.

Gallery: 7 Ways Stores Get You to Make an Impulse Purchase

Color-Coordinating DisplaysHitting the Motif of the Moment'You'll Miss Out'-Style Pricing PromotionsProduct Demonstrations'New and Improved!'



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]]>impulse buysimpulse purchaseimpulse purchasesimpulse shoppingImpulseBuysImpulsePurchaseImpulsePurchasesImpulseShoppingretailshopping studiesshopping studyShoppingStudiesShoppingStudyBarbara ThauThu, 26 Apr 2012 13:45:00 ESTWill You Soon Be Filling Your Prescriptions at a Dollar Store?http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/19/will-you-soon-be-filling-your-prescriptions-at-a-dollar-store/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/19/will-you-soon-be-filling-your-prescriptions-at-a-dollar-store/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/19/will-you-soon-be-filling-your-prescriptions-at-a-dollar-store/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

prescription medicationIf you're taking meds for say, high cholesterol, you can now pick up your Lipitor prescription from a licensed pharmacist at a local dollar store -- if you live in the right place.

Deals, the dollar store chain that's a spin-off of Dollar Tree (DLTR), opened its first location with a pharmacy this year in West Park, Florida, The Sun Sentinel reports.

Given the store upgrades afoot at these modern day five-and-dimes, retail experts are now starting to ask: Will other dollar store chains follow suit?

The addition of pharmacy departments to dollar stores would mark the latest expression of the makeover unfolding at these deep discounters, which gained popularity during the recession, siphoning market share from mass merchants like Walmart (WMT) while winning over higher income consumers who might once have turned up their noses at the chains.

Deals dollar store

Dollar stores have spruced up their digs and added more food to their product mixes, as well as introducing more name-brand merchandise across a variety of product categories.

And they've enhanced their heath and beauty care departments, gunning for the drugstore chains, David Marcotte, senior vice president of market research for retail consultancy Kantar Retail, tells DailyFinance.

Cash-strapped shoppers would especially benefit from the addition of pharmacies to dollar stores, he says. "The dollar stores are overwhelmingly located in lower-income areas that may or may not be served by a drug store or supermarket pharmacy."

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Dollar Tree considers the Deals' pharmacy store a test. The chain's "reason for being is to deliver more value to customers -- we're always looking for better ways to do just that," Timothy J. Reid, a company spokesman, tells DailyFinance. "We'll see where it leads." Should the test go well, pharmacies could roll out to other Deals stores, he says.

One industry watcher predicts pharmacies in dollar stores are almost an inevitability. "Dollar stores, like a fast-moving river, will fill all available territories," said Gene Hoffman, president and CEO of Corporate Strategies International, an investment banking firm, on RetailWire's online forum on the topic. "Thus pharmacies will likely become commonplace in many dollar stores."

But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Dollar General (DG), the nation's biggest dollar chain,"has not announced any plans" to open pharmacies, Tawn Earnest, a company spokeswoman, tells DailyFinance.

And Family Dollar (FDO), the nation's second largest dollar chain behind Dollar General, has no current plans to roll out pharmacy departments either, says Josh Braverman, communications director for the retailer.

However, he added, "We know as boomers age and come to us for more of their over the counter health-and-beauty-aid needs, there are opportunities to continue to remain relevant to our customer."

No Frills, Low Prices

To gain entree to the drugstore business, Deals partnered with PharmaGo, an independent pharmacy, to run the prescription services inside the store.

PharmaGoPharmaGo

PharmaGo offers prices competitive with Walgreens (WAG), CVS (CVS) and Walmart, and makes home deliveries, Bradley Schnur, chief operating office of PharmaGo, told The Sun Sentinel.

Shopper Michael Furey of Pembroke Pines replaced his pharmacy with PharmaGo soon after the Deals store opened close to where he lives. "I spend less money here than if I went to a big chain store," he told the paper.


But as a general proposition, will shoppers really be inclined to fill prescriptions at dollar chains, which, despite their makeovers, still largely operate no-frills stores that were once synonymous with low-quality merchandise and outdated goods from other retailers?

"There may be an image problem associated with dollar stores -- the lowest common denominator brand position may be out of sync with customer expectations," Richard Seesel, principal at In Focus LLC, said on RetailWire. "Target (TGT), Walmart and Costco (COST) don't have the same problem. Maybe Dollar Tree can make this work in its Deals format, but I'm a skeptic."

What's In a Brand?

Still, there's no denying that shopping habits have changed -- so perhaps dollar stores' low-rent image won't be an issue.

Americans have become more channel agnostic these days, and retailers are offering products and services far outside of what their store types or brands are known for. Drugstore chains like Walgreens and CVS are adding fine wine, sushi and nail salons to their stores; discounter Target sells out when it offers fresh looks from upscale designers like Missoni.

"It's about convenience, and what the store brand stands for isn't as key/essential as it once was," said David Slavick, vice president of retail consulting for Customer Communications Group, during the RetailWire forum.

Whether or not shoppers embrace the concept, dollar stores' low-cost structure would seem to preclude a wider roll-out of pharmacies to stores, retail experts say.

"The cost associated with running a pharmacy is grotesquely not in line with running a dollar store," Marcotte says. Adding a pharmacy could run a chain as much as $200,000 per store, he says.

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]]>cheap drugsCheapDrugsCostco Wholesale CorpCVS Caremark CorpDollar General Corpdollar store pharmacyDollarStorePharmacyFinancelow cost prescription programsLowCostPrescriptionProgramsMissoniNo FrillsTarget CorporationWalgreen CoBarbara ThauThu, 19 Apr 2012 05:30:00 ESTOnline 'In Crowd': Why Big Retail Is Courting Small Fashion Blogshttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/18/online-in-crowd-why-big-retail-is-courting-small-fashion-blog/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/18/online-in-crowd-why-big-retail-is-courting-small-fashion-blog/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/18/online-in-crowd-why-big-retail-is-courting-small-fashion-blog/#commentsFiled under: ,

Fashion blogsYou might not have heard of Babblings of a Mommy or I SPY DIY, but more and more, fashion blogs like these have the ears of the nation's biggest retailers, and they're helping determine what you wear and how you wear it.

While much has been made of once-unknown fashion bloggers earning front-row seats at tony fashion shows, those runway looks rarely work their way into the closets of everyday American women. By contrast, the mall stores that dress the nation, from the Gap (GPS) and Sears (SHLD) to Kmart and Forever 21, are turning to fashion blogs for style and trend input, seeking fresh ways to lure today's digitally-connected shoppers.

Chains are also turning to blogs to put their own styling twists on fashion items and showcase their apparel in a new light; some are even forging formal blog partnerships.

Fashion blogs

A Thumbs Up From the In Crowd

Retailers now consult fashion blogs as style sources, according them the same standing as traditional fonts of inspiration such as fashion magazines, trend forecasting firms, celebrities and street culture.

"During the start of the millennium, retailers relied upon trend forecasting firms like the Doneger Group and WGSN to drive their fashion trends," fashion and retail consultant Tom Julian, tells DailyFinance. Now, the immediacy of rapidly reacting blogs can feed stores trend input "more continuously and frequently," he says.

And retailers are all too aware that fashion bloggers have earned the trust of style-conscious shoppers: Fashion tips from these everyday-folks-turned-trend-watchers carry the weight of insights on hot looks from a member of the in-crowd.

Shoppers hit up such blogs for breezy content like "Three Ways to Wear Leopard Print This Spring," "How to Build a Designer Collection on a Budget," and musings on how everyday shoppers pulled together a particular look, or for insider tips on upcoming store sales.

"Fashion blogs derive their authority both from being alpha consumers -- the equivalent of the girl in school who always knew exactly what to wear, and whose influence is now multiplied via the Internet," says professor Susan Scafidi, academic director of the Fashion Law Institute at Fordham Law School.

And retailers want a piece of the action: They're out to leverage blogs' trend authority as well as tap into their ever burgeoning reach -- which has become "massive," according to Alison Jatlow Levy, retail strategist at consultancy Kurt Salmon.

Blogs also offer retailers something that can be elusive: an instant read on what's hot -- and what's not -- with shoppers. While monthly fashion magazines are just that, monthly, "the fashion blogs have become a daily source for many shoppers when it comes to trends, items of the season as well as ongoing conversation -- daily information, chats, tips, columns," Julian says.

Indeed, fashion blogs serve as a "quick and condensed form of consumer response," Scafidi says. "A retailer who wants to know whether a revival of the maxi-dress will be successful or whether consumers prefer to slip on shorts for summer can check the online reaction to new trends before investing heavily in a particular look," she says.


The Gap StoreBlogs as the New Storefronts

For the Gap, "there's no question that blogs play much more of an integral role in fashion today than they did five years ago," Olivia Doyne, director of brand engagement, partnerships and public relations for the chain, tells DailyFinance.

Stores tap a variety of blogs to plug into all manner of trend information.

Fashionista.comForever 21 turns to Fashionista.com for current fashion trends as well as fashion news, Linda Chang, senior marketing manager of the fast-fashion chain, tells DailyFinance. The retailer taps TheManRepeller.com for a lighthearted take on style. Its "humor reminds me that fashion can always be fun and should never be taken too seriously," she says. Meanwhile, Stylebykling.nowmanifest.com's "simplicity and street style is a constant reminder that something less is more."


Penny Chic Kmart hits up sites like I Spy DIY and Penny Chic for trend inspiration, while sister chain Sears counts a long list of fashion, beauty, lifestyle and "mommy bloggers" as trend sources, among them What's Haute, Fashionotes, Babblings of a Mommy and Fantabulously Frugal, a spokeswoman says.

And that list doesn't even include Sears' many content partnerships with bloggers such as Sara Zucker, Alicia Lund's CheetahIsTheNewBlack.com and Tara McNulty's TheWondergirl.com for SearsStyle, the retailer's blogy microsite that's designed to be a style resource.

CheetahisTheNewBlack.com More, some blogs are starting to serve as digital storefronts for retailers. Stores are turning to bloggers to put their idiosyncratic stamp on the merchandise, banking on getting a lift in sales from the sites' populist credibility.

"For a retailer, collaborating with a blog is somewhere between crowd-sourcing and getting a spread in Vogue," Scafidi says. "The combination of street cred and editorial authority can be compelling, and readers are more likely to pay attention to a look styled by a familiar blogger than a slick corporate pop-up ad."

The Gap's Doyne says blogs offer shoppers different perspectives on its clothing. "Consumers turn to the blogs that best represent their style or the style they aspire to have," she says. "For us, it's about how blogs take our key pieces of the season and style them in a way that's relevant to them."

RueIn what Gap describes as a first-of-its-kind digital partnership, the chain is teaming with blogs Refinery29, FabSugar, Lookbook and Rue on its Styld.by web site.

The looks those bloggers create are featured on the retailer's site, where viewers can pick up style inspirations, learn about the products featured, and of course, buy them.

Each blog has its own take. For example, the Gap's colored bottoms -- a hot trend this spring-- received three distinct fashion treatments from a trio of blogs on Styld.by.

"FabSugar took a 'Prep Schooled' approach to our Broken In Straight Khakis in blue by pairing them with an equally bold yellow top and edgy leather jacket; Refinery29 took a playful spin on our 1969 Always Skinny Jean in blue by pairing them with a sheer polka dot button-down and classic cropped jacket; while Rue took more of a 'Tomboy Glam' approach by pairing our 1969 Sexy Boyfriend Chinos in pink with a sheer button-down and cropped blazer," Doyne says.

Gallery: 2012 Fall Fashion Trends
fashion gallery

The partnership just might be working: Gap reported last week that its denim and khaki pants in bold colors have sold briskly this spring, helping to break a long spell of poor sales at the largest U.S. apparel chain.

In a perfect world, a blog can ultimately move product and create promotion," Julian says.

"Read, click, buy -- with the prior approval of a friendly blogger," Scafidi says.



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]]>Alicia LundAliciaLundBabblings of a MommyBabblingsOfAMommyCheetahIsTheNewBlack.comEntertainmentFabSugarFashion blogfashion trendsFashionTrendsFordham University School of LawForever 21I SPY DIYISpyDiyKmartLookbookRefinery29RueSara ZuckerSaraZuckerSears Holdings CorpTara McNultyTaraMcnultyTheWondergirl.comBarbara ThauWed, 18 Apr 2012 05:30:00 ESTShoppers Buy More Furnishings for Their Smaller Houseshttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/13/shoppers-buy-more-home-furnishings-for-their-smaller-houses/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/13/shoppers-buy-more-home-furnishings-for-their-smaller-houses/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/13/shoppers-buy-more-home-furnishings-for-their-smaller-houses/#commentsFiled under: , ,

furniture in small spacesHere's some counter-intuitive news: It seems that people are buying more home products to fill their smaller abodes.

Home furnishings store sales are expected to rise in April, May and June to $23.2 billion, up nearly 8% from the year-ago period, according to an IBM forecast based on data from more than 500 leading U.S. retailers.

The trend toward smaller American homes has compelled consumers to purchase new furniture to fit into these tighter spaces, IBM says.

But the trend away from McMansions isn't the only reason home furnishing sales are up: IBM theorizes that the current Chinese "Year of the Dragon" is turning out to be popular for weddings, hence wedding gifts -- which could also be driving sales.

It's happened before. "We went back to the last Year of the Dragon in 2000 to 2001, and saw a spike back then" in home product sales, an IBM spokeswoman tells DailyFinance. Indeed, "2001 was the third highest sales record for home furnishings over the past 22 years."

Gallery: Pantone Forecast: These Colors Will Dress Your Home Next Year
Pantone Color Forecast Gallery

And amid the still weak housing market, shoppers are opting to spruce up their homes the same way they're accessorizing their wardrobes -- snatching up items like towels, dishes, bedding, rugs and picture frames, IBM reports.

"The concept of 'accessorizing' is moving from the apparel market to home furnishings as many homeowners during the past few years have decided to stay put rather than move," according to IBM's release.

And the economic downturn has only further fueled the home accessorizing trend.

Indeed, "people have been cooped up in their home since 2008, cutting back on vacations, restaurants and new cars, not to mention being home more because so many of them are unemployed," Warren Shoulberg, publisher and editorial director for Home Textiles Today and editorial director for Gifts & Decorative Accessories, the home furnishings trade magazines, tells DailyFinance. "I think they have finally looked around and decided that their homes, in the immortal words of Bette Davis, can best be described as, 'What a dump.'"

In turn, products for cooking and food preparation have been "especially strong sellers as more meals are eaten at home, [while] other home goods like sheets, towels, rugs, dishes, accent furniture and wall art are relatively inexpensive ways for people to freshen up their homes without the expense of buying big-ticket items like bedroom furniture, couches or new kitchen cabinets and appliances," Shoulberg says. "People are figuring if they're going to be stuck home more, it might as well look a little better."

Shoppers appear to be -- most likely, unwittingly -- taking a cue from Bebe Winkler, the decorator known for her luxurious interiors, who once said, "It's not the first thousand dollars that makes a room, it's the last hundred."

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]]>accessoriescocooninghome furnishingshome productsHomeFurnishingsHomeProductshousing marketHousingMarketmcmansionshoppingsmaller homesSmallerHomestrendsBarbara ThauFri, 13 Apr 2012 15:30:00 EST5 Mobile Shopping Trends That Will Change the Way You Buyhttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/12/5-mobile-shopping-trends-that-will-change-the-way-you-buy/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/12/5-mobile-shopping-trends-that-will-change-the-way-you-buy/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/12/5-mobile-shopping-trends-that-will-change-the-way-you-buy/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Mobile ShoppingIt's no secret that smartphones and tablet computers are changing the way retailers interact with shoppers as the mobile devices move from the margins into the mainstream.

"There are 140 million smart phones in the U.S.: That's 43% of all mobile phones in circulation in the U.S.," says Michael Archer, a partner at retail consultancy Kurt Salmon Associates.

And via those devices, consumers are being bombarded with a dizzying number of mobile promotions and apps designed to induce them to shop.

But while a new app seems to debut every few minutes, the digital download format won't be around long term, predicts Natt Fry, mobile and cross-channel retailing leader at consultancy firm Accenture. That's because when HTML5, the next generation of the web, becomes standard in the next few years, "mobile web sites [themselves] will be the predominant method for delivering features and functions versus mobile apps," he tells DailyFinance.

Until then, here are five "thumb shopping" features and apps that retail experts say are worthy of your attention -- and could help reshape the way you buy.

Gallery: Mobile Shopping Trends

1. Augmented-Reality Apps1. Augmented-Reality Apps (continued)2. Price Alert Apps3. Mobile 'Virtual Gifting'4. Tablets as 'Magalogs'



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]]>Augmented realityBest BuyFinanceHTML5iphoneMagalogspersonal financePersonalFinancePottery Barnprice alertsPriceAlertsQR CodeSephorashopping trendsShoppingTrendssmartphonestore credit cardsStoreCreditCardsVirtual GiftingVirtualGiftingBarbara ThauThu, 12 Apr 2012 11:30:00 ESTTax Tips for Procrastinators: The Top 8 Last-Minute Filing Blundershttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/11/tax-procrastinators-beware-8-common-last-minute-tax-filing-blun/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/11/tax-procrastinators-beware-8-common-last-minute-tax-filing-blun/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/11/tax-procrastinators-beware-8-common-last-minute-tax-filing-blun/#commentsFiled under:

Taxes are due - filing tipsHaste makes waste: It's an adage that best describes the fate that often befalls last-minute taxpayers, who, in a mad dash to meet the IRS deadline, make filing flubs that result in smaller refund checks or shelling out more to the government than they owe.

If you're among those last-minute filers, first, take a breath. Then take note of eight common filing mistakes to avoid.

Gallery: 8 Common Last-Minute Tax-Filing Blunders

1. Using an Incorrect Filing Status2. Forgetting Important Numbers3. Making Math Errors4. Leaving Money on the Table5. Misunderstanding What an Extension Means

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]]>1040 forms1040Formsapril 17April17filing statusFilingStatusFinanceinternal revenue serviceInternalRevenueServiceIRSLate Tax FilingLateTaxFilingSocial Securitytax deductionstax extensiontax mistakestax tipsTaxDeductionstaxesTaxExtensionTaxMistakesTaxTipsBarbara ThauWed, 11 Apr 2012 16:45:00 ESTLowest Prices? That's Amazon, Not Walmart, Say Value Shoppershttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/06/always-low-prices-thats-amazon-not-walmart-say-value-shopper/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/06/always-low-prices-thats-amazon-not-walmart-say-value-shopper/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/04/06/always-low-prices-thats-amazon-not-walmart-say-value-shopper/#commentsFiled under: , ,

WalmartWhen it comes to currying favor with America's value shoppers, Amazon is eating Walmart's lunch, according to an online survey.

Walmart's (WMT) standing as the nation's cheapest place to shop is waning in the eyes of low- to moderate-income online consumers, according to the YouGov BrandIndex.

Walmart's value score has declined markedly in the past two years, down from highs in the 50s to its current score of 22 on a scale of 100 to -100. At the same time, Amazon's (AMZN) image as a value retailer gained steam: The e-tailer's score rose from near parity with Walmart's to 71 today.

YouGov bills itself as the only daily consumer perception research firm. Its BrandIndex reflects interviews with 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population.

The question YouGov asked to generate these scores was simple: "Does [the retailer] give good value for what you pay?" Results were filtered by Internet shoppers who make an annual income of $50,000 or less.

Walmart, which became the world's largest retailer by marketing itself as the world's cheapest retailer, has also been fighting to hold onto its discount credibility amid the growing popularity of dollar stores.

To that end, the retailer is investing $2 billion to revive and strengthen its low-price bona fides, which Walmart executives concede have fallen short of late.

Meanwhile, Jeff Bezos, Amazon's quirky CEO and founder, has been building up the e-tailer to be the shopping destination for online bargains on the widest possible assortment of merchandise -- essentially the Walmart of the Web.

Amazon's low-cost operating model isn't weighed down by store operating costs, and the company has made a practice of skirting state sales tax laws to offer shoppers even lower prices.

Amazon's Continuous Evolution

It comes as little surprise that Amazon is stealing Walmart's discount thunder, says Kenneth Wisnefski, founder and CEO of Webimax, which develops online marketing strategies for retailers such as Aéropostale (ARO) and Sam's Club (WMT).

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"The reason Walmart is declining in value perception is quite simply because they have not done enough to capture the online shopper," he tells DailyFinance. "We have Amazon.com, a fortress in e-commerce and online shopping, continuing to offer new brands, discounts and incentives, while Walmart is being left in the dust," he says. "The depleting value stems from their lack of online presence and their inability to offer multiple brands at various price points."

And Walmart's discount edge isn't only dulling in the eyes of lower income shoppers, Wisnefski says.

"While the study discusses a low-income shopper, the reality is, the majority of consumers are focused on finding the lowest prices and best deals online," he says. "The 2012 consumer is price savvy and is becoming more experienced as to how to bargain shop for products. With the major shift in retail moving online notably over the past 10 years, consumers now have almost 10 years' worth of experience in online shopping and price comparison.

"Walmart can compete better by offering numerous brands of the same product -- as Amazon does -- however they will have to institute an aggressive strategy to capture some of Amazon's market share, which won't be easy," he says.

NEXT: 5 Big Retail Chains That Will Be Gone in 5 Years

Gallery: 5 Big Retail Chains That Will Be Gone in 5 Years






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]]>AéropostaleAmazon.com Incbargainsbest pricesBestPricese-commerceFinancelowest pricesLowestPricespersonal financePersonalFinanceshoppingvalue shoppersValueShoppersWalmartyougov brandindexYougovBrandindexBarbara ThauFri, 06 Apr 2012 11:10:00 EST