How Ralph Lauren markets luxury in a digital world

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January 18, 2012 News for the retail industry   Top Story    Macy's: Focus on your best customers Macy's top-down philosophy of focusing on pleasing the customers it already has, rather than living in new-customer acquisition mode, has paid off for the department store. Some 70% of U.S. households shop at the department store at least once a year, CMO Peter Sachse said during a Tuesday panel at Retail's BIG Show. Retail's BIG Blog (1/17)        PLAYTIME Differentiates Retail Shopping Experience “Our indoor play spaces are just one of our branded retail amenities that exemplify our unique relationship and understanding of shoppers in our local communities," reports Westfield’s Juliet Mothershed. Retailers are creating new, exciting family shopping destination by adding indoor play as a primary draw. More   Industry Watch  David Beckham takes H&M to its first Super Bowl Hennes & Mauritz will debut its first-ever Super Bowl commercial next month, spending big to tout the global launch of its new David Beckham Bodywear collection. The Swedish clothing chain typically launches new celebrity lines with short films created in-house and rarely spends significantly on outside advertising. Advertising Age (tiered subscription model) (1/17)      Saks' shift to customer-centric model starts with marketing Saks is in the early stages of moving toward a customer-centric retail model, starting with a database that aggregates information from all sales channels and is available to all departments across the company, marketing executive Kimberly Grabel told attendees Tuesday at Retail's BIG Show. "Our early tests in marketing are getting everyone excited and we're beginning to engage the whole company." Multichannel Merchant (1/17)        Fate of 86 Zellers stores is up in the air Target made big news when it announced plans to enter Canada with the acquisition of all but 86 Zellers stores; now, mall owners, small towns and retailers are wondering what will become of the stores not taken. Zellers has long-term, low-rent leases on most of the spaces, taking the decision largely out of the hands of mall owners and small towns that want to redevelop the real estate for stores that would generate more revenue and new jobs. The Globe and Mail (Toronto) (1/17)      See how Cardmembers use American Express OPEN Cards to help run their business: “American Express customer service is phenomenal. There's always someone at the end of the line, whether it's evenings, weekends, or holidays.” - Eli Wilner, Eli Wilner & Company With the Business Platinum Card from American Express OPEN, you can enjoy over 30 premium benefits to help power your business. Including, 24/7 customer service. LEARN MORE & APPLY   Retail trends  Why do consumers love dollar stores? The growing appeal of discount chains such as Dollar Tree, Dollar General and Family Dollar may not lie in price alone -- two of the three sell many items priced higher than a dollar, and all have shelves stocked with smaller product packages to keep the price down, according to this story. The real appeal may be the convenience of staying in the neighborhood to shop, says analyst John Tomlinson. SmartMoney Magazine (1/17)      Retailers need hard data to understand holiday sales Black Friday, Cyber Monday and other big holiday sales days generate much buzz and many anecdotes about who is shopping and how much they're spending, but merchants need hard data to truly analyze results and try to predict what comes next, writes AudienceScience Gateway vice president Jeremy Mason. Advertising Age (tiered subscription model) (1/17)        NRF 101st Annual Convention & Expo    How Ralph Lauren markets luxury in a digital world Ralph Lauren has embraced its inner geek to reach out to customers in a digital world, executive vice president of advertising and marketing David Lauren said in his keynote address at Retail's BIG Show. "We fuse art, fashion and technology. There is no secret. It's about finding the right technology to help you tell the story." Star Tribune (Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.) (1/17)        5 retail trends you need to know about Boosting sales this year will involve new ways of seeking out and connecting with customers, said panelists at Retail's BIG Show. Shorter attention spans mean figuring out how to tell your story in 140 characters, redefining e-commerce as everywhere commerce as consumers find more digital channels for shopping and turning brick-and-mortar stores into a place to curate new ideas. Portfolio.com (1/17)      How can you quantify the hidden impact of mobile on purchases, purchase intent, loyalty and retention? Now you can do a better job of managing your mobile initiatives and maximizing mobile’s ROI with ForeSee satisfaction analytics. Learn more at foresee.com and visit us at booth 3103 at NRF.   Retail Technology  Tech trends from the EXPO floor Retail's BIG Show More than 400 vendors set up on the EXPO floor at Retail's BIG Show, with most of them focused on retail tech solutions. In this video, vendors share a glimpse of the next big things in mobile, social, supply chain optimization and inventory management. Retail's BIG Blog (1/17)          Sponsored Content    3 Successful Small Business Cause Marketing Campaigns Stacey Politi Would You Fire Someone for Working Through Lunch? Courtney Rubin 7 Technologies Marketers Can't Live Without Ivana Taylor How the U.S. Can Lead Innovation Again Anita Campbell Is It Time to Finally Ditch Your Paper Business Card? Todd Wasserman   NRF News  Amazon.com tops list of best retailers for customer service Consumers have spoken: Amazon.com has the best customer service among U.S. retailers, according to a survey of thousands of shoppers. The announcement of the 2011 NRF Foundation/American Express Customers' Choice No. 1 spot was delivered this week at Retail's BIG Show -- and included a video revealing why the top ten winners stand out to consumers. Watch the video. Retail's BIG Blog (1/17)      NRF SmartStat: Jan. 18, 2012 NRF forecasts retail industry sales to rise 3.4% in 2012. Source: NRF.        BJ's Wholesale Club, Ascena Retail Group, Belk, Sport Chalet, and Dave's Soda and Pet City executives join NRF board NRF announced today the addition of five retail executives to serve on its Board of Directors, including Tim Belk of Belk, David Jaffe of Ascena Retail Group, Craig Levra of Sport Chalet, David Ratner of Dave's Soda and Pet City, and Laura Sen of BJ's Wholesale Club. Terry Lundgren, Macy's chairman, president and CEO, was reelected to serve another year as chairman of the board. Read more.      Learn more about NRF -> Join NRF  |  Govt Relations  |  NRF Events  |  STORES  |  NRF Foundation   Chain Restaurant News  McDonald's locations have different rules on reusable cups McDonald's locations across Canada have different rules when it comes to filling reusable cups. Some stores refuse to fill the eco-friendly travel mugs because of portion concerns while others cite food safety issues. Canada.com (1/17)      Other News Red Lobster makeovers enter Central Florida market Orlando Sentinel (Fla.) (1/17)      Position Title Company Name Location Retail Analytics Specialist QuantiSense Atlanta, GA Buyer Jeans Warehouse Los Angeles, CA Corporate Retail Visual Presentation Manager Soft Surroundings St. Louis, MO VP, Division Planning Manager The Bon Ton Stores, Inc. Milwaukee, WI Merchandise Planner-Contemporary Handbags Saks Fifth Avenue New York , NY Merchandise Planner-Designer Shoes Saks Fifth Avenue New York , NY Senior Marketing Strategy & Loyalty Consultant Alliance Data Columbus, OH Software Developer PetSmart Phoenix, AZ Director eCommerce Operations Pier 1 Imports Ft. Worth, TX Sales Associate Saks Fifth Avenue Naples, FL Saks Fifth Avenue - Marketing Director - Philadelphia area Saks Fifth Avenue Bala Cynwyd, PA Saks Fifth Avenue - Group Selling Manager - Men's Saks Fifth Avenue Chicago, IL Talent Development Director Saks Fifth Avenue San Antonio, TX Marketing Director-San Francisco Saks Fifth Avenue San Francisco, CA Marketing Director Saks Fifth Avenue Indianapolis, IN Women's Designer Selling Manager Saks Fifth Avenue Cincinnati, OH Fifth Avenue Club Director Saks Fifth Avenue San Antonio, TX Assistant General Manager Merchandise Saks Fifth Avenue Boca Raton, FL Assistant General Manager Merchandise Saks Fifth Avenue Sarasota, FL Talent Development Director Saks Fifth Avenue Atlanta, GA Pricing Analyst Barnes & Noble, Inc. New York, NY Business Developer IKEA Trading Services Inc. Houston, TX Assistant Controller Brooks Brothers Enfield, CT DVP Spirit Halloween Marketing, Licensing & Creative Services Spirit Halloween Egg Harbor Township, NJ Sr. Director, Store Planning and Construction Spencer Gifts/Spirit Halloween Egg Harbor Township, NJ Click here to view more job listings.   SmartQuote  Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity." --George S. 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