  | February 28, 2011 | News for the retail industry |  |  | |
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 - CEO Leahy steps down from a much larger Tesco
Tesco CEO Terry Leahy is retiring after 14 years at the helm, during which he made the supermarket chain one of the biggest successes in the U.K., accounting for 30.5% of grocery sales. He is credited with successfully introducing the Clubcard loyalty card and the Finest store brand as well as with expanding the chain to 13 countries, making it the world's third-largest retailer. The Guardian (London) (2/25)        | Are you keeping up with the changing world of employee health care? Get The Basics of Employee Health Care for Small Business: A Guide to Creating a Company Benefit Plan, and find out what you need to know today. There's no obligation. Click to download a FREE whitepaper. |
 - NRF's chief economist details 2011 retail forecast
Consumer confidence is on the rise, supporting NRF's forecast of a 4% rise in retail sales this year, despite the potential for higher prices to put a damper on spending, says NRF chief economist Jack Kleinhenz. Rising gas prices and higher costs for cotton and other commodities could curtail some discretionary spending this year, but "there is a good indication that there is more confidence in the economy. The outlook is more favorable overall," he said. DailyFinance.com (2/26) - NRF study: Consumers more willing to treat themselves
Consumers have shifted their attitudes about spending and are more willing to spend money on gourmet coffee, haircuts and casual-dining experiences, suggests survey results from NRF. Women are more likely to give up cable service, but both sexes say Internet connection is a must. Men and women consider subscriptions to magazines, fine dining and satellite radio expendable. MediaPost Communications/Marketing Daily (2/25)  | Learn how your competitors are changing their POS to boost sales...
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  | Are You In with the In Crowd?
In each company there is a core group who seems to call the shots, or perhaps are those for whom the shots are called. For better and for worse this group, not on any org chart, reinforces whatever it pays attention to. Order this Harvard Business Review article to better recognize and lead these key influencers. |
 | Hot Topics |  | | | Top five news stories selected by NRF SmartBrief readers in the past week. - Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.
| Policy & Government Affairs | | | | - Conn. governor raises ire with proposed coupon tax increase
Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy has proposed raising the state's sales tax on coupon purchases and discounted merchandise by requiring retailers to collect tax on the original price. Supporters say the move would raise much-needed tax revenue and help close a projected $3.5 billion budget shortfall, but the move has raised the ire of coupon users and discount shoppers who say they're counting every penny as they struggle to make ends meet. The Hartford Courant (Conn.)/The Associated Press (2/27) | | | Most Popular Headlines from Last Week Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers. |
| NRF News | | | | - When retailers will report monthly sales in 2011
NRF's 4-5-4 calendar serves as a voluntary guide for the retail industry and ensures sales comparability between years by dividing the year into months based on a 4 weeks/5 weeks/4 weeks format. The 4-5-4 calendar also establishes sales release dates, which have historically been on the first Thursday following the month's end. NRF has released calendars for 2011, 2012 and 2013. View the calendars.
| Chain Restaurant News | | | | - Panera CEO's former political ambitions translate into philanthropy
 Panera CEO Ron Shaich gave up political ambitions for a restaurant career early on, but never forgot his desire to make the world a better place. After seeing a news story several years ago about an independent community cafe in Denver, Shaich set about to try it with his successful fast-casual chain. "We call this cafe a shared responsibility. This is our gift to the community and the community's responsibility is to take care of each other," he said. FastCasual.com (2/25)  | |  | | The Buzz(CORPORATE ANNOUNCEMENTS)
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| SmartQuote | | | |  | Real success is not on the stage, but off the stage as a human being, and how you get along with your fellow man."
--Sammy Davis Jr.,
American actor and singer  |
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Two out of five online consumers used customer product reviews as part of their holiday shopping process in 2010. Source: 
