Today on Total Retail

Google is planning to open a two-level store in Chicago’s Fulton Market district, its first known location for a retail flagship, according to a report in the Chicago Tribune. According to the report, the technology giant is close to finalizing a lease for almost 14,000 square feet on the first and second floors of several connected,…

In this episode of Retail Right Now, Total Retail's Caitlin Sullivan and Joe Keenan discuss Tiffany & Co.'s efforts to target millennial and Gen Z consumers, and how other retailers can engage with these sought-after demographics.

There's no doubt that even as 2018 shapes up to be a great year for small, independent retailers, it takes a lot to open, run and manage a small business. On top of managing a brick-and-mortar location, retailers have an e-commerce channel to consider, new digital forms of payment, and the need to drive repeat…

From family vacations to weekends floating on the boat, summer is a time best spent soaking up the sun. While temperatures heat up during these warmer months, retailers often find themselves experiencing a sales chill. In July 2017 alone, total sales decreased nearly 10 percent in the late summer. Despite these frigid numbers, there are…

Competing in a world dominated by digital powerhouses like Amazon.com makes it virtually impossible to excel without prioritizing effective merchandising — supported by the right tools, processes and people. Our focus at the e-tailing group has always been on merchandising, as we see it to be a key differentiator in digital selling. Therefore, we were…

As a mom of two young kids, I can’t imagine a world before grocery delivery, theme park fast passes, or my Tide to Go pen. We live in an age defined by instant communication, with everything at our fingertips or just a click away. Customers can make purchases and get loyalty rewards almost anytime, anywhere.…

Two leading U.S. retail brands — Tiffany & Co., Kroger — announced this week the expansion of their businesses into China through partnerships with Alibaba. Jewelry brand Tiffany & Co. will release its latest “Tiffany Paper Flowers” collection in China exclusively on the Luxury Pavilion, Tmall’s invite-only platform for luxury brands. Tiffany will launch a virtual…

Herman Miller, a designer, manufacturer and retailer of office and home furniture, is tapping IBM Cloud Video’s live streaming video technology to connect with its network of 134 independent dealers operating from 247 different locations in the U.S. As retailers and brands continue to pivot to omminchannel strategies to compete with Amazon.com, these companies are…

I have a lot of conversations about automation, and I feel like we can’t shake the nagging perception that automation means robots are coming to take human jobs … In fact, it’s actually the opposite. The goal of automation, specifically in commerce, is to offload the demands, complexity and monotony that high-volume businesses experience, freeing…

August is here, and while many of us are soaking in the last summer beach days, back-to-school (BTS) season is already in full swing. BTS is the second most popular shopping season of the year, bringing excitement, nostalgia and, most importantly, sales. On the heels of the National Retail Federation’s 2018 BTS report, which forecasts…