“Paycheck Shock” Reins in January Sales
More to Come From The Beltway? It’s President’s week, so instead of staying in Washington to work out a compromise that would avoid huge mandatory budget cuts, Congress has left town for recess. Little...
View ArticleJCP, Argo, the Golden Fleece, Odysseus, and the Sirens
There is some irony to JCP’s heavy sponsorship of the Oscars relative to Argo winning “best picture.” The fact that the mythical Greek ship Argo and its crew were searching for the elusive Golden...
View ArticleWalmart’s Hire-a-Vet Program: Patriotic Gesture? Or Good for Walmart?
American veterans returning from war have had a history of finding employment at Fortune 10 companies. After the Korean War they got engineering and sales jobs at IBM and Texaco. After Vietnam they...
View ArticleHogwash
And if You Believe It, I “Have a Bridge to Sell You.” Hogwash is a great word, as I was reminded by my colleague, Judy Russell, CEO of consultancy Markethink. First used in the 15th Century, it...
View ArticleBribery, Felony or Line Item?
Are we all felons bribing our way though international commerce or victims of corruption, forced to pay the price of admission? Let’s face it. Bribery is a cottage industry in many countries—part of...
View ArticleHow Trader Joe’s Lures Shoppers With Quirky Products and Brands
Trader Joe’s is undoubtedly the nation’s most successful limited-assortment grocery chain; lines actually go around the block in New York City’s two outposts during the holidays. So what’s really going...
View ArticleWhat Your Intern is Really Thinking
I’m here to set the record straight about the Millennial work ethic, by giving you a little insight into the world of internships. They have become the popular alternative to entry-level positions, and...
View ArticleWhy Are Handbags So Important?
Functional, Personal Statement, Self Expression, Fashion Accessory, Status Symbol? The correct answer I believe is: “All of the above.” I’m not a handbag person, per se, although I own several. I don’t...
View ArticleAfrican Sun
My consulting practice takes me all over the world. Through my travels, I have the unique opportunity to be a student of human nature and behavior – especially when it comes to the retail marketplace....
View ArticleThe Penney Dividend
There’s a billion dollars of home business missing; anybody have a clue where it went? One thing is clear: Over the past 12 months, the new JC Penney/The Penney Co./JCP/Whatever has lost about $1...
View ArticleCrows, Crows Everywhere, and Which Ones to Eat?
Note that the crow sitting on my shoulder is not yet on a plate waiting to be eaten. That’s because I’m trying to remember all the reasons for which I should be eating crow, and when I identify all of...
View ArticleHey JCP: We Millennials Will Demand Fair and Square
Ron Johnson’s highly publicized tenure at JC Penney has ended, and perhaps with it, the potential of JC Penney to compete for the middle class Millennial. Sure, they may regain the customers they lost...
View ArticleThe Perfect Fit at Bloomingdale’s
We all know about the problem of lousy fitting apparel, but, the percentage of women who can’t find clothes that fit is awesome: try 62%, and online, it’s the biggest barrier for trying new brands....
View ArticleStores Blame Cold Weather, Early Easter for Season’s Slow Start
Retailing is a lot like professional sports. Both are highly competitive, both require a combination of talent and luck, and both involve big money. And sometimes, there’s so much drama taking place...
View ArticleThe Green Marketing Act
You got rid of the landline three years ago because two-thirds of your calls were from telemarketers. Then you downgraded your cable service wondering why you were paying so much for so little. Now you...
View ArticleLand Of Opportunity To Barren Wasteland
“Bubble Capitalism” Crushes the American Dream Forget the cresting, breaking and other visible economic waves we discern on the surface of our economy — all accompanied by “cyclical” blathering of the...
View ArticleAmazon Frightened the Behemoth And It Boomeranged
That would be the Walmart behemoth, still the one and only behemoth of its size in the world, the last I took count. At about $61 billion in annual revenues, Amazon is still a puny contender to...
View ArticleMillennials in the Workplace – True or False
We Millennials can be a little difficult to decode at work; our incessant attachment to our phones; our buddying up with senior executives; our loose understanding of office hours. Many of our...
View ArticleThe Human Metric: Activating a Customer-Centric Organization
In my previous article, I discussed how traditional metrics—like comp sales performance—often work against retailers in their efforts to improve store performance. Continuing that conversation, we now...
View ArticlePrivate Labels, Public Nuisances, and Captured Moments
All the recent hubbub over a certain Connecticut homemaker’s image and brand is only the tip of a major merchandising movement that is starting to consume the home furnishings field. As national brands...
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