  | Global retail industry news |  |
- South Africa's Shoprite warns about Wal-Mart's entrance
Shoprite, the largest grocer in South Africa, said that if Wal-Mart is allowed to take a majority stake in its rival Massmart, it will be forced to increasingly depend on less expensive imports. "For Shoprite to protect its image in South Africa, where it is known for cheaper prices ... there would be no other alternative but to import," said Gerhard Ackerman, director of food buying and imports at Shoprite. The country's competition authorities are considering Wal-Mart's bid. Reuters (12 May.)       - Canadian Tire to sell major appliances as profit jumps
Canadian Tire is planning to start selling dishwashers, washing machines and other major appliances as it emerges from its sales growth rut. "People are very receptive to buying major appliances," said Mike Arnett, president of the retail division. "It leverages the strength and credibility that we already have in the smaller kitchen appliances where we have market leadership, so it's not that big a stretch." Ottawa Citizen (Ontario)/Reuters (12 May.), Financial Post (Canada) (12 May.) - Pakistan's Nishat Linen opens store in Dubai
Nishat Linen, a clothing manufacturer and retailer based in Pakistan, is dipping its toe in the international marketplace by opening shop in Dubai Festival City. Nishat Linen is planning to open six outlets in the Emirates by the end of 2011 and 25 stores in the region by the end of 2012. "This is our first move outside Pakistan and we want to build a business here to launch to the rest of the world," said Ahmed Jahangir, executive director of Nishat. The National (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates) (12 May.)  | Health care reform got you down? Learn more from UnitedHealthcare on how the federal changes to medical benefits will affect you and your employees. This comprehensive guide highlights incentives for enrollment and a timeline of important dates and deadlines. Don't let them pass you by—Learn more here! |
 - Dixons sees 7% decline in British sales
In the 28 weeks to April 30, Dixons Retail saw its same-store sales at its UK chains, PC World and Currys, drop 7% as trading remains difficult. "With challenging economic headwinds continuing for many of our customers, we remain cautious on the outlook for the year ahead. Having had a strong World Cup performance as well as the exclusivity of the iPad last year, we have tough comparables ahead," said John Browett, head of Dixons. Telegraph (London) (12 May.), Bloomberg (12 May.)  | Organizations who handle payment card data are obligated to comply with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). This whitepaper discusses how the TransArmor® solution can enable scope reduction, minimizing costs and effort of PCI compliance. |
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 - Brazil's retail sales continue to rise
For the 11th straight month, retail sales in Brazil rose in March, adding 1.2% compared with February, according to the Brazilian Census Bureau. Sales have gained 9.5% over the past 12 months, but officials are seeing a slowdown in growth. "If you look at the year-on-year figure, we see a deceleration in consumption between February and March, when there was a decline from 8.5% (in February) to 4.1% (in March)," said Reinaldo Pereira, coordinator at the census bureau. "We'll have to wait until next month to see whether this inflection will continue." MarketWatch (12 May.)  | Nudge Your Customers
Well-designed default options drive profits, simplify processes, enhance customer satisfaction, and reduce risk. Poor defaults leave money on the table, fuel consumer backlashes, and even trigger lawsuits. Based on a decade of research, this HBR article describes default options and suggest when to use each. Order here. |
 | E-commerce Spotlight |  | | | - Vente-privee.com joins with AmEx to expand into US
The French luxury retail site vente-privee.com and American Express have formed a joint venture, equally splitting ownership. The move will expand American Express's e-commerce operations while allowing vente-privee.com to launch a US site. Dan Schulman, head of American Express' technology expansion efforts, said vente-privee.com was attractive to AmEx because of its "heritage in the luxury market." Reuters (12 May.) | Spotlight on Fashion | | | | - Supergroup reports 61% gain in quarterly sales
Supergroup, the company behind fashion brands such as Superdry, 77Breed and SurfCo California, reported a 61% rise in total sales in the quarter that ended May 1. However, the company saw sales surge 87% in the previous quarter. The slowdown in sales growth prompted shares in Supergroup to slide. Supergroup said the sales slowdown is merely a blip and the retailer is expanding, noting the attractiveness of the Chinese market. BBC (12 May.), Telegraph (London) (12 May.), The Independent (London) (13 May.) | NRF News | | | | - NRF's Joe LaRocca outlines what's hot in retail loss prevention
In advance of next month's Loss Prevention Conference in Dallas, NRF Senior Asset Protection Advisor Joe LaRocca shares his thoughts on the hottest LP trends this year. What's No. 1 on his list? Staying ahead of the curve on changing retail technology, such as mobile POS, touchless pay systems and near field communications. Watch the video.
| SmartQuote | | | |  | A healthful hunger for a great idea is the beauty and blessedness of life."
--Jean Ingelow,
British poet and novelist  |
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